MASSIVE

Operation Manual
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does
not represent a commitment on the part of NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GmbH. The
software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement and may not
be copied to other media. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or
otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission
by NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GmbH, hereinafter referred to as NATIVE INSTRUMENTS.
All product and company names are trademarks of their respective owners.
Furthermore, the fact that you are reading this text means you are the owner of
legal version rather than an illegal, pirated copy. It is only through the loyalty and
honesty of people like yourself that NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GmbH can continue
to develop and create innovative audio software. On behalf of the entire company,
thank you very much.

Users Guide written by John von Seggern and Nicolas Sidi

Special thanks to the Beta Test Team, who were invaluable not just in tracking down
bugs, but in making this a better product.

© NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GmbH, 2006. All rights reserved.

Germany USA
Native Instruments GmbH Native Instruments North America, Inc.
Schlesische Str. 28 5631 A Hollywood Boulevard
D-10997 Berlin Los Angeles, CA 90028
Germany USA
info@native-instruments.de info@native-instruments.com
www.native-instruments.de www.native-instruments.com
Table Of Contents
1. Welcome to MASSIVE!..................................................................... 5
2. Installation and Setup..................................................................... 6
3. Quickstart...................................................................................... 7
3.1. Load and play........................................................................... 7
3.2. Create your own sound..............................................................11
4. Reference.....................................................................................17
4.1. Signal Flow and Voicing.............................................................17
4.2. Interaction with the User Interface.............................................19
4.2.1. Section Headers and Popup Menus..................................19
4.2.2. Faders and Knobs......................................................... 20
4.2.3. Modulation Controls.......................................................21
4.2.4. The Center Window....................................................... 26
4.2.5. Macro Controls, Automation and MIDI.............................27
4.3. Standalone Menus and Navigation Bar....................................... 30
4.3.1. The Standalone Menus.................................................. 30
4.3.2. The Navigation Bar.........................................................31
4.4. Oscillator Section.................................................................... 33
4.4.1. Wavetable oscillators..................................................... 34
4.4.2. Wavetable Controls........................................................ 34
4.4.3. Amplification and Routing.............................................. 38
4.4.4. Modulation oscillator..................................................... 39
4.4.5. Noise Section................................................................41
4.4.6. Feedback Section..........................................................41
4.5. Filter Section.......................................................................... 43
4.5.1. Routing........................................................................ 43
4.5.2. Filter Types.................................................................. 45
4.6. Insert Effects...........................................................................47
4.6.1. Routing.........................................................................47
4.6.2. Delay........................................................................... 48
4.6.3. Sample & Hold............................................................. 48
4.6.4. Bitcrusher.....................................................................49
4.6.5. Frequency Shifter...........................................................49
4.6.6. HPLP.......................................................................... 50
4.6.7. Sine Shaper.................................................................. 50
4.6.8. Parabolic Shaper............................................................51

MASSIVE – 
 4.7. Output Sections . .....................................................................51
4.7.1. Amp Section..................................................................51
4.7.2. Bypass Section............................................................. 52
4.7.3. Master Effects Section .................................................. 53
4.7.4. Master Volume Section................................................... 55
4.8. The Center Window................................................................. 56
4.8.1. General Pages...............................................................57
4.8.2. Modulation Pages..........................................................69
4.9. Macro Control Section.............................................................. 83
4.10. The Browser and Attributes Views............................................ 84
4.10.1. The Attributes Concept and the KoreSound.................... 84
4.10.2. Searching and Loading Sounds with the Browser............. 86
4.10.3. Defining Attributes and Saving KoreSounds.................... 92
Appendix A – How to Work with Attributes........................................... 94
Appendix B – Attributes Reference....................................................103
Index.............................................................................................. 111

 – MASSIVE
1. Welcome to MASSIVE!
Thank you for choosing MASSIVE! This new software instrument combines
a unique synthesis engine with unparalleled ease of use –- but most of all
it is focused on sound creation. MASSIVE is your solution for punchy bass
lines and cutting leads, while at the same time it is also capable of beautiful
atmospheric pads and funky rhythmic grooves.
This manual will show you how to use MASSIVE and all of its features. To
help you take full advantage of the creative possibilities of MASSIVE, it will
explain the innovative wavetable engine that is at the heart of the synthesizer’s
sound, as well as the unique filters that give MASSIVE its characteristic, analog
sound. It will describe all internal effects, the internal feedback circuit and
the wide variety of advanced routing capacities that give MASSIVE its power
and flexibility. And, last but not least, the manual will show how to set up
modulation routings within MASSIVE, one of its most powerful yet also most
intuitive features.
The manual itself consists of two major parts. Chapter 3, Quickstart, contains
two introductory tutorials. These will guide your first steps with MASSIVE,
introducing you to its parts and features and how to begin using them. This
is the point to start from if you are completely new to MASSIVE. Chapter 4,
Reference, is a systematic reference of all functions of this synthesizer. It
covers all aspects of MASSIVE and provides usability hints as well as technical
information. If you need more information about a specific part of MASSIVE,
here is where you will find it.
But most of all, we hope that you will enjoy the sound of MASSIVE!

Your MASSIVE Team

at NATIVE INSTRUMENTS

MASSIVE – 
2. Installation and Setup
Before continuing further in this manual, you should first install MASSIVE on
your computer. A step-by-step installation guide is provided within the separate
Setup Guide booklet included in your MASSIVE package. There you’ll find
information about how to install the application on your hard drive and how to
configure its audio and MIDI interface settings. The Setup Guide also explains
how to use MASSIVE as a standalone application or as a plug-in within a host
sequencer program. Finally, you’ll also find there a step-by-step introduction
to the Service Center application. You can use the Service Center to register
and activate your copy of MASSIVE via the Internet. The Service Center also
includes an Update Manager that helps you download the most recent version
of MASSIVE. You should check regularly for updates to MASSIVE for best
performance and compatibility with other audio applications.

 – MASSIVE
3. Quickstart
Welcome! After installing MASSIVE on your computer, this is the place to
start getting acquainted with its main features: two quickstart sections that
will guide your first steps in loading and creating sounds with this exciting
new synthesizer. Our first quickstart (see section 3.1 below) will focus on how
to find and load a sound from MASSIVE’s sound library using the powerful
Browser View, so you can start playing right away. The second quickstart (see
section 3.2) will show you how to begin using MASSIVE’s vast sound design
capacities to sculpt your own new sounds.

3.1. Load and play

Start here if you are completely new to MASSIVE and unsure how to begin.
In this quickstart, you will learn how to set up MASSIVE, use the Browser
to search the sound library, load a sound, tweak some Macro Controls, and
have a look at the Range Knobs and see how they can be controlled by the
Macro Controls.

Get MASSIVE sounding

Before first working with MASSIVE, you should check its Audio and MIDI
Settings. Assuming that MASSIVE has been properly installed and activated
on your computer (see the separate Setup Guide for more on this), start the
standalone version of MASSIVE. To set up the audio and MIDI interface options,
choose File > Audio and MIDI Settings from the menus at the top.
On the Soundcard Tab, you should select ASIO on Windows for best results.
(On a Mac this will be set to CoreAudio, your only choice in Mac OSX.) Then
use the Output Device field to select the audio interface. We recommend
setting the sample rate to 44100 and setting the output latency to about 10
ms. (Note that in some cases you may need to adjust the latency/buffer size in
the software control panel for your soundcard; you may need to quit MASSIVE
first to do this.) These are recommended settings that should work well on
most computer systems; for information on what these settings mean, please
refer to our Setup Guide where this is explained in more detail.
On the Routing Tab, check that the two virtual outputs of MASSIVE are properly
routed to the audio interface’s outputs. If “Not Connected” is displayed here,
you won’t hear anything!
On the MIDI Tab, check that the MIDI interface or device you are using is
turned on. If you see your interface listed but it is off, click on the “off” label

MASSIVE – 
to turn it on. If your MIDI device does not appear here, there may be a problem
with the installation of the device itself (or its software drivers). If you don’t
have a MIDI controller available, you can still play MIDI notes by using the
computer’s keyboard. We have assigned the four rows of alphanumeric keys
in a similar pattern to that of a piano keyboard. For example, the bottom row
of keys on your computer keyboard (from Z on the left to / on the right) is
assigned to the white keys of the piano keyboard, with the Z key being assigned
to C. The row of keys above that (from S to ;) covers the corresponding black
keys, with S assigned to C#. The two rows of keys above are assigned in a
similar pattern, but one octave higher.
Please note that there is also another MIDI Setup Tab within the Options Dialog,
found in File > Options; this deals with some additional MIDI setup options,
but we don’t need to worry about this just yet. (More information about this
additional setup dialog can be found in section 4.3.1.)
Now let’s close the Audio/MIDI Settings dialog and begin working with
MASSIVE!

Find your sound

First let’s take a look at the Browser and see how to find and load a sound
from the built-in sound library.
Switch to the Browser View by clicking the Browser button towards the right
side of the Navigation Bar.

You’ll see the Database View of the Browser at the lower left, and the Search

 – MASSIVE
Result List to the right. Above, you will see the eight Macro Control knobs
(see section 4.2.5) as well as the Master Volume Control (see section 4.7.4).
The Browser itself is described in detail in section 4.10.1.
When you first open the Browser View, the Search Result List at the lower
right will show the list of all sounds available in MASSIVE. Now let’s try
using the Attributes at the lower left of the Database View to limit the Search
Results:
• click on one or more Attributes in any column and they will be
highlighted
• the Search Results List will update automatically to display only those
KoreSounds that match the set of active Attributes
• click a selected Attribute again to deselect it
• when no Attributes are selected, the Search Results List will display
the list of all available KoreSounds
• try selecting one or more Attributes from each column left to right and
watch how the list gradually narrows; for example, try selecting (from
left to right) “Bass”, “Synthetic”, “Distorted”, “Lead” and “Drum&Bass/
Breaks” and find the sound “Rampage” on the right
• now load this patch from the Search Results List by simply double-
clicking on its name
Using the Attributes is a very convenient and powerful way to quickly find the
sound you want to use!

Play your sound

Now that you have loaded “Rampage,” try playing some notes with your MIDI
keyboard and you should hear the sound. You might try playing in the lower
range of the keyboard, as Rampage is a bass sound. Try modifying the output
with one of the Macro Control knobs, arranged in a row 1-8 just above the
Browser: while holding down a MIDI key and sustaining a sound, click on the
third Macro Control and drag the mouse upwards. The Macro Control knob
will follow the movement, and you should hear some effect, depending on
what the Macro Control is assigned to in the particular patch you are using.
(For more on the Macro Controls and how they are commonly assigned, see
section 4.2.5).
Now try using a different sound. In the bar between the Macro Controls and
the Database View, click the Reset Button (the circle-like icon within the
illustration below) and all attributes are deactivated.

MASSIVE – 
You will see all the sounds in MASSIVE reappear at the right. Now let’s try
searching for sounds another way:
• click with the mouse in the Search Term field to the right of the Reset
Button
• type “pad” in the Search Term field
• you will see the Search Results again automatically update and narrow
to include only those KoreSounds that contain your search term in their
names or other Meta Information fields (see section 4.10.3)
• double-click one of the matching KoreSounds you see to load it
• play and hold a MIDI note
• try tweaking the various Macro Controls 1-8 and listen to the variety
of sounds that can be created by different settings
How are these Macro Controls affecting the sound? Let’s change to the Synth
View now to get an idea of how this works. Click the Synth Button towards the
right side of the Navigation Bar to switch to the Synth View. You will see the
same eight Macro Control knobs 1-8 in the lower right corner of the window.
However, in the Synth View you can see how each control is modifying the
sound, and you can create your own control assignments. For example, in
the image below (displaying the Rampage sound loaded previously), the small
yellow numbers beneath the control knobs indicate that the knobs are being
controlled by Macro Controls 1 and 2, respectively.

The range of influence of the Macro Control over the control it is affecting is
proportional to the corresponding yellow ring around the control. For example,
in the image above we can see that the influence of Macro Control 2 on the
Intensity knob is greater than that of the green modulation source indicated
by the numeral “6”. The different color reflects that this modulation source is
not a Macro Control, but an LFO. The blue “2”, finally, denotes an envelope
generator.
For more on MASSIVE’s modulation sources, see section 4.8.2. We will also
see how to set up these connections in the next quickstart.

10 – MASSIVE
3.2. Create your own sound
In this quickstart we’ll show you how to create a simple lead synth sound
and introduce you to some of the fundamental sound design techniques of
MASSIVE. Note that this section assumes that you understand the information
in the previous quickstart already, so if you haven’t done it yet, go back and
go through section 3.1 first. Here we will see how to select a wavetable for
each oscillator and tweak the controls to modify the sound. We’ll also see
how to configure MASSIVE’s filter busses and control them with a modulation
source.

Controlling the wavetables

First, create a new, empty sound for editing by selecting File > New Sound
from the File menu in the Navigation Bar. Now look at the Oscillator Section
in the upper left corner of MASSIVE: it should look like the left-hand image
below. In the following instructions, we will adjust the various knobs and faders
step-by-step until they match the settings in the right-hand image instead,
and explain why.

First, let’s start with some synthesis basics: in most synthesizer designs,
oscillators of some kind are used to generate the raw sound material that is
manipulated afterwards by filters (see section 4.5), effects (see sections 4.6
and 4.7.3), and other controls. One of the most unique features of MASSIVE is
that the individual oscillators generate sound by using wavetables, rather than
just simple waveforms as in many other subtractive synthesizers. This gives it
the ability to create dense, unique, morphing sounds that would be impossible
to produce using other synthesis techniques. For detailed information about
MASSIVE’s wavetable synthesis engine, see section 4.4.1.
For now, we’re just going to look at how you can creatively work with some
of the controls here without worrying too much about what is actually going
on under the hood.
MASSIVE – 11
The most fundamental parameter affecting the sound in MASSIVE is the
choice of which wavetable to use for each oscillator. The other parameters
here in the Oscillator Section allow you to modify how that wavetable is
used. You can select a wavetable to use for each of MASSIVE’s oscillators
independently, by using the popup menus in their headers: click where you
see the indication “Square-Saw I” for each oscillator in turn and set them to
“Dirty PWM”, “Squelchy”, and “Screamer” respectively.
Now let’s try adjusting the wavetable position, i.e. which part of the wavetable
is to be used: try adjusting the Wavetable Position Control of the topmost
oscillator with the mouse while holding down a MIDI note, and listen to the
effect this has on the sound. After playing with this control a bit to get a feel
for it, set this control to a position of about 10%, just like in the right-hand
image above. Now try adjusting the Wavetable Position Control of the third
oscillator; do you hear any change in the sound? You will not hear any change
because its Amplitude Control (marked Amp in the image) is turned all the
way down.
In order to match the image above, increase the Amplitude Control of Oscillator
3 to the maximum (all the way to the right). Similarly, set the Amplitude
Control of Oscillator 2 to about 70%. Finally, set all three oscillators’ Routing
Faders (the sliders on the right edge) controlling the Filter Routing to their top
position. The filters will be explained next.

Configuring the filters

MASSIVE provides two filter busses to shape your sounds, with exceptionally
flexible routing capabilities. Here you can insert a variety of different filter
types to manipulate the raw sound from the oscillators.
When you start working on a new sound, the Filter Section should look like the
left-hand image below. In the following instructions, we will again adjust the
knobs and faders step-by-step until they match the settings on the right.

First, set the Filter Input Fader (labeled F2 and marked “Ser<>Par”) all the
way to the top. This sets up a serial filter routing, such that the second filter

12 – MASSIVE
takes the first filter’s output signal as its input signal. In this example, we
want the two filters to process the signal subsequently one after another, not
parallel/simultaneously.
Then, choose the first filter’s type by clicking the header (where “None” is
written) and selecting the entry from the list in the popup menu. Let’s choose
the Daft filter type for this example.
Now play a MIDI note: you should hear no sound at first, because by default
the Filter Cutoff control is turned all the way down (to the left). Hold the note
on your MIDI controller and turn the Cutoff knob up to the maximum (to the
right) by clicking and dragging with the mouse. As you increase the cutoff, the
filter gradually opens and you will hear the sound revealed bit by bit.
For this example, also turn up the Resonance control to about 60%; tweak
the Cutoff again a bit to listen to the difference it makes in the sound.
Now slide the Output Fader (at the right-hand edge of the Filter Section) all
the way to the bottom. This fader sets the output mix of the complete Filter
Section, between Filter 1 and Filter 2. When it is set to the bottom of its range,
we will hear only the output of Filter 2 and no direct output from Filter 1.
Now play a note again: you should hear no difference yet. Although the sound
is passing through Filter 2, we haven’t selected any filter to use. Change this by
clicking on the popup menu in the header of Filter 2 and selecting the Scream
filter. Now hold a note and gradually increase the Cutoff control to its maximum
value (all the way to the right) by clicking and dragging with the mouse; you
should hear the sound gradually change as the cutoff is increased.
Now set the Resonance Control to a middle position, approximately 50% of
its total range. If you play a note, the sound should sound a bit different than
without Filter 2, but the difference is still marginal. (Remember, you can
compare the sound with and without Filter 2 in the signal chain by moving
the Output Fader up and down with the mouse.)
In order to make more complex and interesting sounds with MASSIVE, we
need to add a few more techniques to our sound design toolkit. In the next
section, we’ll look at how to use modulation sources to change the parameters
of the oscillators and filters over time.

Setting up MIDI assignments and modulation sources

There are basically two different types of modulation that you can use in
MASSIVE: you can set up MIDI assignments that allow you to change the
parameters manually (or by sending MIDI automation commands from a
host sequencer), or you can set up modulation sources within MASSIVE that
automatically change over time, such as envelopes, LFOs and sequencers.

MASSIVE – 13
In the first case, to set up control via MIDI, first drag the cursor to the Macro
Control Section in the lower right corner of MASSIVE’s interface. Here, click
on the Modulation Handle of Macro Control 4, i.e. the small cross in the upper
right corner. You will see a small numeral “4” appear, which will be attached
to the mouse pointer and follow it. Now, move the cursor to the rightmost
Modulation Slot of the second filter’s Scream Control, i.e. the small dark
rectangle just below the knob. Click here in the Modulation Slot and the 4
attached to the mouse cursor will disappear, and you will see the 4 visible
in the Modulation Slot instead. This indicates that you have assigned Macro
Control 4 to control this parameter, the Scream parameter of the filter. (Note:
if you hold down the Alt key and double-click the Modulation Slot holding
the 4, you can remove the assignment. You can also access a context menu
to edit your assignments by right-clicking the Modulation Slot; select the Off
entry here to remove an assignment.)
Having made this assignment to the Scream Control, now try tweaking Macro
Control 4 with the mouse while playing a note. You will hear no effect from
this assignment yet, because the amount of effect of Macro Control 4 on the
Scream parameter has not been set. Do this by clicking on the small “4” in the
Modulation Slot and dragging the mouse up: you will see a yellow ring appear,
becoming longer as you move the mouse upwards. (You can also shorten it
again by moving the mouse back downwards.) The longer the ring segment,
the greater the influence of the source set in the Modulation Slot, i.e. Macro
Control 4. Let’s set this to a length of about 60% around the knob, and then
try moving the Macro Control while playing a note. Now you should be able
to hear the effect of the assignment!
To control the Scream parameter with a MIDI device, right-click Macro Control
4 and select “MIDI Learn” from the context menu. Then move your MIDI
controller’s knob or fader that you want to use - the assignment will take place
automatically, assuming that your device is connected correctly. Now you can
change Macro Control 4 and the Scream parameter with your MIDI device.
Let’s look at how you can add an automatic modulation source to modify
another parameter in MASSIVE. First, we’ll try assigning one of the envelopes.
Click on the blue tab of the first envelope (labeled “1Env”) within the Center
Window and you will see something like this:

14 – MASSIVE
This page shows us the controls of one of MASSIVE’s four envelope generators.
Envelopes are signals that first rise when a note is played, stay at some fixed
level as long as the key is held (usually), and then fall back to zero when the
note is released. Envelopes are often used to define the volume of a note,
becoming louder when a key is pressed, holding that volume, and decaying
when the note is released.
For our example, we want to use the envelope to modulate the Cutoff of Filter
1. First we will set up the envelope shape we want. Try increasing the Attack
Control value to about 70% of its full value so that the initial ramp of the
envelope becomes much longer (as in the image above). Then, click on the
Modulation Handle of the envelope (the small blue cross within the envelope’s
Header Tab, just to the right of the label “1Env”). Assign it to the Cutoff of
Filter 1 by clicking into the first Modulation Slot under the Cutoff knob; you
will see the small blue “1” appear in the slot when it has been assigned.
Once again, the modulation amount needs to be set before you will hear any
effect from the assignment. Click the Modulation Slot again and drag the
mouse downwards. You will see a blue ring start from where the controller
is (i.e., at the right) and move “inversely” to the left. Set this to about 10%
of maximum value, as in the right-hand image in the previous section. This
inverse modulation means that high envelope values will actually lower the
Cutoff value instead of increasing it. Try playing a note on your MIDI controller:
the sound will become duller in the time after you hit the key, as the envelope
signal increases and turns down the Cutoff control. If you try adjusting Macro
Control 4 again, its influence is now also audibly much stronger because of
the added influence of the envelope on the filter cutoff.
For more on envelopes and other modulation sources, see section 4.8.2.

MASSIVE – 15
Saving and Beyond
Congratulations: you have just created your first sound in MASSIVE! Now let’s
save it in our sound library for future reference.
You can save your sound by switching to the Attributes View. Do this by clicking
the Attributes View Button within the Navigation Bar, between the buttons for
the Browser View and the Synth View.
Here in the Attributes View you can set the attributes for your sound so
that you can find it in the database in the future, just as explained in our
first quickstart (see section 3.1 above). As we saw, there are many different
attributes available for you to use in categorizing your sounds. (Note: you can
find a complete definition of each one in Appendix B and several examples in
Appendix A.) For this first sound, let’s just quickly select a few Attributes to
index our sound. Click on Bass, Distorted and Sweep/Filter Mod by clicking
their labels here.
At this time, you can also add your name in the Author field of the Meta
Information at the right, along with any other descriptive details you might
choose to enter to help you find the sound again when you need it.
When you’re done, click the Save As button within the Navigation Bar and enter
the name of your new sound; clicking OK then saves it to the database. You
will now be able to find your sound from the Browser by using the Attributes
or by entering terms in the Search field.
If you would like to hear an example of what could be done to further modify
this sound, go to the Browser, enter “propeller” into the Search Term field
and load the KoreSound “Propeller Saw.” Switch to the Synth View and
you should be able to see some similarities with the example we have been
working with here. If you start looking at what makes this KoreSound different
from our example, you’ll find a lot of inspiration and techniques for your own
creations.

16 – MASSIVE
4. Reference

4.1. Signal Flow and Voicing

This section explains the exact routing of the Signal Flow in MASSIVE. We
recommend reading this part if you really want to understand how MASSIVE
works, as it shows exactly how all of the various parts of the synthesizer are
connected and can affect each other.
The signal flow in MASSIVE is relatively easy to understand, as it follows the
well-known paradigm of a subtractive synthesizer. It is extremely flexible and
contains some powerful additional features as well. The Signal Flow is pictured
in the Routing Page of the Center Window:

Here is a basic description of how it works.

Three wavetable oscillators and a noise oscillator generate four audio signals to
form the basis of the sound. There is also an additional modulation oscillator
that does not mix its signal into the audio signal, but is used to modulate the
three main oscillators. Various modulation modes (phase modulation, ring
modulation, position modulation) can be selected. Besides these modes, the
modulation oscillator can also be used to modulate the filters’ frequencies.
In addition, there is also a feedback bus (explained further below) that brings
back part of the signal from later in the chain and mixes it back in as an input
source. Have a look at section 4.4 for more information about these initial
stages of sound generation.
These source signals are mixed down to two individual filter busses using the
Routing Faders on each source. The Input Fader (labeled Ser <> Par at the
top) mixes the second filter bus signal with the output of the first filter; in
other words, you can crossfade between a parallel filter routing (the second
filter uses an individual input bus) and a serial filter routing (the second filter
uses the output of the first filter). Note that if this is set to serial and all the

MASSIVE – 17
oscillators are routed to the f2 bus, you will hear no sound! The Filter Section
outputs one combined signal to the next section, a mix of f1 and f2. See
section 4.5 for details and examples of different filter routings.
After the filters, the signal is routed to the Amp Section (see section 4.7.1) and
the Master Effects (see section 4.7.3). It goes first through an amplification
envelope in the Amp Section, then through a pan control; then parallel voices
are downmixed (more on this below). Then the signal passes through the
Master Effects one at a time, then a final EQ, and finally through a Master
Volume to set the global output volume.
Note that there are also a few parts of the signal flow that can be moved or
changed: the Insert Effects, the Bypass Section, and the Feedback Section.
The role of these modules in the signal flow is controlled in the Routing Page
(see section 4.8.1).
The inserts are effects that can be inserted into the signal flow at various
places to manipulate an audio signal. They could be applied to both filter
busses individually, or between the filters with a serial setup, or to the filtered
signal before it is amplified, or to feedback signal only. See section 4.6 for
more on how this works.
The Bypass control selects the output from one of the three main oscillators
or the noise oscillator and routes this signal directly to the Amp Section at the
end of the signal chain, where it is added to the downmixed signal at various
places: after the Pan, or after FX1 or FX2 in the Master Effects Section.
This can be used to keep a direct, raw signal mixed in the output, such as a
subbass. There is more information about this in section 4.7.2.
The Feedback control lets you route an audio signal from a number of different
points in the chain (selectable in the Routing Page) and route it back to
the Feedback Section. Feedback can be used to alter a filter’s frequency
characteristics, to saturate/distort the sound, or to use feedback with delay
signals and so on. (See section 4.4.6 for details.)
Tightly linked to signal flow is the voicing structure of MASSIVE, which specifies
how the synthesizer’s voices are handled. If you want to play chords, you need
several voices, one per note, just as when playing a chord on a keyboard, you
need multiple fingers to press all keys simultaneously. Each of MASSIVE’s
voices can generate one of the notes within the chord, i.e. each voice can
have its individual pitch and starting point. However, all voices share the same
structure and general settings as adjusted in the User Interface.
You can see the number of voices when looking at the Navigation Bar: the
number of voices currently being used is displayed first, and the maximum
number of voices available is displayed second. (You can adjust this maximum
number within the Voicing Page of the Center Window.)

18 – MASSIVE
The sound of each voice is computed independently from all others until the
signal is downmixed to generate a stereo output signal (like a downmix in a
multi-track sequencer). This downmix process takes place just before the
signal is routed through the Master Effects. This is particularly important as
the tube effects, for example, would sound different and less interesting if
the downmix took place after the effect.
In the Voicing Page you can also find the Unisono Control. This can enable
you to trigger several internal voices when triggering one note with the MIDI
keyboard. This is analogous to the situation in an orchestra when several violins
are playing the same notes, or when several singers sing the same part in a
choir. If all singers sang exactly similarly, the sound would only become louder,
but as each singer actually sings just a bit differently, the actual sound becomes
richer and more complex when more singers are added. This is also true for
MASSIVE: you can use multiple voices for one note, and can, for instance,
detune each voice slightly to create a choir-like effect. All this can be adjusted
within the Voicing Page of the Center Window (see section 4.8.1).

Please note that each voice used needs to be computed independently

by the computer: the more voices you use, the heavier the CPU load.
Also note that due to internal optimizations, the CPU load is minimized
when the number of voices can be exactly divided by four, i.e. it is
preferable to use 4, 8, 12 etc. voices.

4.2. Interaction with the User Interface

This section will describe the conventions of MASSIVE’s graphical user interface
(GUI) and explain how to work with its controls. Note that operating MASSIVE
on Mac or Windows machines is largely identical, with some slight differences
due to the way the two operating systems handle file systems and keyboards.
While key commands are given for Windows, they are parallel on the Mac.
When the text says “right-click,” use ctrl-click on Macs.
Please note that this section is concerned mainly with the mechanics of
using the interface and controls so you can get straight to work with them. It
will not provide detailed explanations about what all these controls actually
do or how they work; see the other sections in the Quickstart and Reference
chapters for that information.

4.2.1. Section Headers and Popup Menus

Each section of MASSIVE’s interface has a header that describes it; for
example, OSC1 is oscillator 1 and so on. There are also Mute switches for

MASSIVE – 19
each section. Click the Mute switch with the mouse to deactivate a particular
section; click again to return to the active state.
It can often be useful to turn off a particular section of the signal chain when
you are creating sounds in MASSIVE. For instance, imagine a filtered sound
where you want to check the raw oscillator signal - simply click the Mutes
for both of the filters to turn off the filters. This preserves all the settings of
the filters while temporarily making their effect inaudible. Note that turning
a module off will also save CPU power on your system, so keep this in mind
if you are running into CPU overload issues!

Many of these sections also have some kind of popup menu to the right of the
section header. These are used to select from a range of different choices for
that section, such as wavetables and oscillator modes, filter types and effects.
These popup menus are easy to use. Clicking one of them brings up a list of
choices you can scroll through; clicking again on one of these entries selects
it and automatically closes the list.

Note that the oscillator modules also feature Previous and Next buttons in the
header (see image above), which will load the wavetables one after another in
the order of their menu listing. This is a great way to scroll through and find
the appropriate wavetable for your own sound quickly and conveniently. (For
more on wavetables and how they form the basis of your sound in MASSIVE,
see section 4.4.1.)

4.2.2. Faders and Knobs

Faders and knobs are used to control most of MASSIVE’s major functions.
In general these work the same way as faders and knobs you may be used to
in other audio software: simply click a knob with the mouse and drag up and
down (while holding down the mouse button) to alter the knob’s value.
Please note that in most cases the numerical value of the knob’s parameter is
not displayed: a strictly analog approach. We hope that you will trust your ears
while working with MASSIVE, in the same way as the pioneers of electronic
music, who had no digital readouts to assist them!
A number of control conventions have been implemented throughout MASSIVE
for quick and accurate editing of its various parameters:

20 – MASSIVE
 • Click with the right mouse button to open a context menu providing
a list of commands concerned with MIDI and modulation. The latter
point will be explained in section 4.2.3 below, while MIDI is covered
in section 4.2.5.
• Hold the keyboard’s shift key while changing the knob’s value with the
left mouse button to make finer adjustments to a control.
• You can also use the mouse wheel to change the value of a control; if
you hold down the shift key while using the mouse wheel, the value
will change in coarser steps.
• Double-click with the left mouse button to reset the knob to its default
position.
There are also a couple significant general points about the knobs and faders
that you should be aware of.
• For one thing, all of the controls in MASSIVE have been made to
function as much as possible like their physical counterparts in an
analog hardware synthesizer. In some cases this significantly affects the
sound that is produced. For example, if you turn up the Amp knob on
one of the oscillators, this will increase the output level of the oscillator
into the filter busses, just as you would expect. However, it may also
change the quality of the sound coming out of the filter as well, as you
drive the filter input hotter, just as with real analog circuitry!
• The other important point to understand about the knobs and faders
in MASSIVE is how they are used to map modulation destinations and
ranges; this is described further in the next section.

4.2.3. Modulation Controls

One of the most important innovations in the design of MASSIVE is the way
we have made use of Range Knobs to map and control modulation effects.
Colored rings around each knob are used to indicate which modulation targets
are routed to this parameter. Many of the parameters in MASSIVE can be
controlled with this technique.

It is important to understand how to assign modulation sources in MASSIVE,

as this is one of the main sound design techniques you have available. Here’s
how it works:

MASSIVE – 21
 • The available Modulation Sources are listed across the top of the Center
Window. These include four independent ADSR envelopes as well as
four more sources that can be switched between LFO, Performer, and
Stepper modes (more on these modulation sources below in section
4.8.2).
• To assign a modulation source to a destination, first simply click on
the Modulation Handle: the small cross following the name of the
Modulation Source you want to use. You will then see the source’s
number attached to the mouse as it moves. Then move the mouse
towards the destination you want to modulate and click again on one
of the Modulation Slots, the small black boxes near each knob or fader
available for modulation.
• As you make the assignment, you will see the small colored numeral
appear in the Modulation Slot. Obviously, the numeral indicates which
modulation source (1-8) has been assigned to the slot, while the color
indicates the type of modulation source: blue indicates an envelope,
green indicates an LFO or step sequencer, and orange indicates a Macro
Control assignment.
• Now you can adjust the modulation amount by clicking on the assigned
modulator slot and dragging up or down. As you do so, you will see a
colored ring appear around the knob to indicate the active range of the
modulator. A small break at the limit of the modulation range serves as
a clipping indicator to show if the limit of a modulation range is higher
or lower than the knob or fader’s minimum/maximum value.
Note that you can also access and change modulation settings in a context
menu that appears when you right-click one of the modulation slots (see image).
Through this menu you can mute, unmute, delete (use the OFF menu choice),
or create new modulation assignments with any of the modulation sources
in MASSIVE. (See section 4.8.2 for more information on the modulation
sources.)
Also, the additional editing options available for the main controls (such as
making finer adjustments by using the Shift key and dragging) are also available
for modulation amount changes.

Sidechain modulation
If you look closely at the three modulation slots under one of the Wavetable
Position knobs in the Oscillator Section (for example), you will notice that there
are two standard modulation slots (marked with a hyphen beneath them) as
well as a third slot marked “SC.”

22 – MASSIVE
This third slot can be used to set up sidechain modulation. This is a type of
modulation in which a modulation source can be assigned which will affect
the value of other assigned modulation sources. Here’s how this works:
Normally, unless you activate the sidechain modulation, all three of these
modulation slots will allow you to assign modulation sources to change the
value of the control, and the range of the modulation will be set by the Range
Knobs as described above. If you assign more than one modulation source
to a single control by using more than one of these slots, their values will be
added together to calculate the total amount of modulation.
However, if you click the small “SC” under the third slot, the sidechain
modulation will be activated and the modulation will work somewhat differently.
In this case, the third slot will act as a sidechain modulation slot and its
value will be used as a multiplier changing the value of the other modulation
sources. In this case there is no modulation range set for the sidechain
modulator; rather, the value of the sidechain modulation source will be read
as a multiplier between 0% and 100%, changing the range of effect of the
other modulators.
Sidechain modulation allows you to set up quite dramatic effects with the
other available modulation slots, and then vary those effects by a percentage
of effect, somewhat similar to using a wet/dry control to vary the amount of
an insert effect.
Try assigning a Macro Control to the sidechain modulation destination to
enable the use of an external MIDI control as a wet/dry control, you can set
this up like this:
• First, set up a modulation routing between one of MASSIVE’s LFOs
and the Wavetable Position knob (for example), as described earlier in
this section.
• Then click the tiny “SC” label under the third Modulation Slot under
the Wavetable Position knob to activate sidechain modulation. You
also need to click the small line below the modulation slot you want to
influence; it then becomes a small arrow.

MASSIVE – 23
 • Moving our attention to the lower-right corner of the screen, click on
the modulation handle of Macro Control 1; then drag the mouse back
to the upper-left corner of the screen and release it over the sidechain
modulation slot under the Wavetable Position knob.
Set up like this, the LFO is causing the Wavetable Position knob to sweep back
and forth, while moving Macro Control 1 will change the amount of influence
the LFO has over the position of the knob, from 0 to 100% of effect. If Macro
Control 1 is turned all the way to the left (minimum), then the LFO will not
move the knob at all. Conversely, if Macro Control 1 is turned all the way to
the right, the LFO will cause the knob to sweep back and forth over the entire
range you have assigned.
To add an external MIDI controller to control this, simply right-click on Macro
Control 1; you will see a small MIDI Learn dialog box pop up. Now move a
control on your external MIDI controller and the assignment is made. (For more
on how to use the Macro Controls, see below and also in section 4.9.)
You can also use one of MASSIVE’s other modulation sources as a way to
vary the amount of active modulation instead of using a Macro Control. Still
following the example above, try using the Stepper instead of a Macro Control
to modulate the amount of effect the LFO has over the Wavetable Position
knob:
• Click the modulation handle next to the Stepper modulation source
in the Center Window, then drag the cursor to the same sidechain
modulation source under the Wavetable Position Knob, where you had
previously assigned Macro Control 1.
• The small orange numeral 1 representing the Macro Control, replaced
by a small green numeral representing the Stepper.
• Now the control signals from the Stepper will determine how wide an
effect the LFO will have over the Wavetable Position knob.
Presuming that the Stepper modulator is in tab 8 of the Center Window (this
is the default, although it can be changed if you select a different modulation
source in tab 8), your assignments will now look something like this:

Again, don’t worry too much yet about what all this means or how it will sound
as we are just learning how the controls function here. For more detailed
information about how to use the various modulation sources in MASSIVE in
particular, see section 4.8.2.

24 – MASSIVE
Faders in MASSIVE are assigned in the same way as knobs. Some of the fader
controls (such as the Input Fader on the filter bus, labeled “Ser>Par” on the
interface) can accept modulation sources in the same fashion as knobs, and
have the same small black boxes near them to serve as modulation slots. After
making assignments and dragging up or down to set the modulation range,
you will see colored lines along the side of the fader indicating the range you
have set, as in this image:

Note that just as with knobs, some faders in MASSIVE have sidechain
modulation slots as well, with similar functionality.

Bipolar Modulation
Please note the positive/negative polarity of the modulation source. LFOs are
bipolar, i.e., they oscillate between positive and negative values. For example,
if you assign an LFO to an oscillator’s pitch and set the modulation depth to
one semitone (a strong vibrato effect), the pitch will actually oscillate between
+1 and –1 semitones. On the other hand, if you assign an envelope to the
pitch and apply the same amount of modulation (one semitone), the envelope
will cause the pitch to rise from 0 to +1, then falling back to 0.
This bi-polarity is of importance when you use high modulation amounts around
an extreme general setting. For instance, let’s say you have the Intensity control
at about 90% to the right. Assign an envelope to it and cause it to modulate
the control by about -25%. Thus, with high envelope signals the Intensity is
lowered to about 65%:

If you now replace the envelope with an LFO (simply take an LFO’s modulation
handle and drop it into the Intensity knob’s modulation slot that is currently
holding the envelope), the Intensity will not only be modulated “to the left”,
but also “to the right”. As the adjusted modulation depth is larger than the
available range at this “side”, (25% added to a base Intensity value of 90%
sums up to 110%), the modulation signal will be clipped. This does not cause

MASSIVE – 25
any problems; but the clipping might not be the effect you desired when setting
up the modulation, so you should be aware of how this works.

Note that this bi-polarity is also true for voice spreading. If you adjust the
Wavetable Position Spreading control to nearly 100% (as shown in this image)
and set the actual Wavetable Position Control in the Oscillator Section to the
middle of its range, the voices will spread over the complete range. If you now
turn the Wavetable Position Control to the left, those voices already using a
very low wavetable position due to the spreading will not be able to follow this
move. They will stay at their position. When the control is turned completely to
the left, the actual spreading will only be half as much, as the left half of the
controller’s possible motion is clipped and set to the minimum value. (Have
a look at section 4.8.1 for more information about voice spreading.)

4.2.4. The Center Window

One of the main ideas behind MASSIVE is to keep your workflow as simple and
fast as possible. MASSIVE basically contains only one main editing page for
the oscillators, filters and effects, so most of the basic parameters generating
your sound are always kept visible.
The Center Window serves as a display for editing a variety of other parameters
that do not need to be accessed so frequently, as well as in-depth editing of
your modulation sources.

The Center Window display can be switched between eight modulation sources
and six pages of general settings. You can choose which page of controls to
access by clicking one of the two rows of labeled tabs across the top of the
Center Window. Please note that these tabs are not hierarchical in any way,
i.e. all of the tabs for both the modulation sources and the general settings
are visible at all times regardless of which tab is active in the upper row.

26 – MASSIVE
The eight modulation sources are grouped into envelopes (slots 1-4) and
assignable pages (slots 5-8) that allow you to choose between the LFO,
Performer, and Stepper modulation sources. If you have chosen one of these
assignable slots, you can choose one of these types by using the popup menu
in the upper-right corner of the modulation source page.

Note the Modulation Handles that appear in this image, just to the right of
the name of each of these sources. As noted above, you must click on one of
these handles with the mouse, then drag the cursor to a modulation slot and
release the mouse button in order to make a modulation assignment.
Check the appropriate sections 4.8 below for more in-depth information about
the functioning of each of these modulation sources.

4.2.5. Macro Controls, Automation and MIDI

The Macro Controls are found in the lower right corner of MASSIVE’s panel
when you are in the Synth View. They help unify your interaction with all of
the other controls in MASSIVE, particularly when you are trying to make music
instead of just creating and programming new sounds. Like the modulation
sources of the Center Window (the envelopes, LFOs, Stepper and Performer),

MASSIVE – 27
each Macro Control knob provides a Modulation Handle. With this handle the
Macro Controls can be assigned to any parameter of MASSIVE as a modulation
source, i.e. any changes to the value of the Macro Control are then mapped
onto the modulated parameter.

Setting up assignments this way can be a very powerful technique, especially

in two particular situations.
In the first place, when designing sounds in MASSIVE you may often find that
two or more parameters are interconnected in creating interesting sonic effects
although they are not directly connected in the Signal Flow. For instance, you
might want to decrease the Amplitude Control of the first oscillator whenever
the second oscillator’s Amplitude Control is increased, in order to keep the
sound’s overall volume relatively the same. Normally, you would need to tweak
two parameters independently at the same time in order to accomplish this.
Using the Macro Controls, you can assign one knob to control both parameters
and modulate them in opposite directions. Now, when you change the Macro
Control’s value, both modulation targets are changed simultaneously.
In addition, the Macro Controls enable you to unify your access to your preferred
controls in a given sound, a functionality that will come in handy in live
performance situations particularly. For example, you can change the frequency
spectrum of the sound by altering the filter’s cutoff frequency; however, you
can also modify the frequency spectrum by changing the Wavetable Position
Control to change the basic waveform(s) used to generate the sound. You can
use the Macro Controls to unify access to these most important parameters,
putting them all in one place where you can easily work with them.
Note that most of the sounds in the preset library included with MASSIVE
follow a standard assignment scheme for the Macro Controls. This control
scheme specifies that, for example, the first two Macro Controls always deal
with frequencies and the sound’s spectrum; Macro Control 5 is always used as
the effects’ dry/wet balance; and so on. This scheme is optional for your own
sounds. However, you may find it is easier to remember these assignments
and work with sounds if you always follow a similar control setup. Refer to
section 4.9 for more about this scheme.
Because of their central functionality in interacting with the sonic parameters
of MASSIVE, the Macro Controls are also the most prominent interface for to

28 – MASSIVE
use for automation. In this case, automation means that a specific parameter
of MASSIVE – for example a filter’s cutoff or the amount of feedback, or the
vibrato depth – is controlled from outside of MASSIVE. This can be done in
two ways:
• You can assign any of the Macro Controls to MIDI continuous controllers.
Simply right-click the Macro Control to open a context menu, click the
entry “MIDI Learn” and then move a knob or fader on your external
MIDI controller to establish the connection.
• You can also control the Macro Controls from a host application (e.g. a
sequencer) if MASSIVE is used as a plug-in within that host. MASSIVE
will provide a list of automatable parameters to the host, and the Macro
Controls will always be at the beginning of the list for easy access.
(Please consult the documentation for your host sequencer for more
detailed information on how to setup automation assignments if you
are not sure how to do this.)
Please note that neither MIDI nor automation is bound to the Macro Controls.
The Macro Controls are not the only parameters reported to the host program
to be automatable –- nearly all of the controls in MASSIVE’s user interface
can be subject to host automation. Also, by using the context menus that
appear when you right-click a control in MASSIVE, you can assign any of its
parameters directly to a MIDI controller without using the Macro Controls.
You can even save your MIDI assignments to a MIDI setup -- see section
4.3.1 for more information on how to do this. You can store the complete
MIDI assignment layer (e.g., Cutoff assigned to MIDI CC 1, the first oscillator’s
Wavetable Position Control to MIDI CC 12, and the third Macro Control to
MIDI CC 64) into a separate MIDI configuration file without any information
about the underlying sound. Consequently, the sounds that are loaded by
MASSIVE don’t contain MIDI CC information either. We have set it up this
way for two main reasons:
• You might want to use different MIDI devices with MASSIVE in different
situations. For instance, imagine that you work with a small keyboard
for live situations with four tiny knobs, but in the studio you use a full-
featured master control keyboard. If you were to set up your sound’s
MIDI assignments with the studio keyboard, you would probably run into
problems when using your small live keyboard as the assignments will
be different. Since MASSIVE separates the sound settings and the MIDI
assignments into separate files, you will not have these problems, as you
can easily switch the MIDI setup files depending on the situation.

MASSIVE – 29
 • Also, sounds created by somebody else using a different MIDI controller
might be useless for you. This is, however, no problem in MASSIVE as
the MIDI configuration is stored in the independent MIDI Setup file.
Coming finally back to the Macro Controls in MASSIVE’s graphical user
interface, beside the eight knobs there are also four small additional Modulation
Handles labeled KTr, Vel, AT and TrR. They can be used to assign MIDI data like
a note’s velocity or aftertouch to a parameter. You can find more information
on this and the Macro Controls in general in section 4.9.

4.3. Standalone Menus and Navigation Bar

4.3.1. The Standalone Menus
The Standalone menus are only present in the standalone version of MASSIVE
and will not be seen when it is being used as a plug-in. (However, note that
the File menu can also be accessed in plug-in mode by using the File Popup
Menu in the Navigation Bar.) The Standalone menus File and Help provide
access to basic file management functionality and to help topics:

New Sound, Open Sound, Recent Files, Save and Save As

Use these options to load and save your sound files. Refer to section 4.10 for
general information about file handling.

Options
When you open the Options dialog in the File menu, you will see three tabs:
General, MIDI and Browser.
The General Tab allows you to set the default author’s name, which will then
be pasted into the Author field in the Meta Information of a new sound. You
can select whether the name is pasted in when a new sound is saved, or when
a sound is saved under a new filename (i.e. with the Save As command).
The MIDI Tab controls MIDI CC assignments as MIDI Setups. Each setup saves
all MIDI assignments made in the User Interface (refer to section 4.2.2). For
example, if you have a MIDI keyboard with 8 knobs you can assign them via
MIDI learn to the 8 Macro Controls and then save that setup here for future
use. Note that MIDI CC assignments are not saved with the KoreSounds: you
don’t have to check which MIDI CCs are assigned to the Macro Controls in a
given sound, but simply use your own customized MIDI Setup to control them.
This greatly unifies and simplifies your MIDI interaction with MASSIVE.
The Browser Tab allows you to add or delete paths from the database, specifying
where your KoreSounds are stored. All KoreSounds found within the folders set

30 – MASSIVE
here (or their sub-folders) will be integrated into the database when the Rebuild
Database button is pressed. (See also section 4.10 for further details.)

Audio and MIDI Settings

The Audio and MIDI Settings are explained in detail in MASSIVE’s accompanying
Setup Guide. You can find a fast introduction to these settings in section
3.1.

Help
Here you can find information about MASSIVE: You can launch the Service
Center to activate your copy and check for updates. On the MASSIVE website
you will find news and additional information about the synthesizer. The entry
“About Massive” finally opens a screen that displays the software version, your
serial number, and a list of all people that helped creating MASSIVE.

4.3.2. The Navigation Bar

The Navigation Bar runs along the top of MASSIVE. It features two popup
menus (File and Preset) as well as some control buttons and informational
indicators (see image below). Let’s look at these from left to right and see
what they do.

File
The File popup menu is identical to the standalone’s File menu and contains
the same entries. Refer to section 4.3.1 for details.

Preset Selector
The Preset Selector allows you to quickly load a sound without switching over
to the Browser View. Upon clicking here, a list of the current Search Results
is displayed. The content of this list is specified in the Browser View: if you
loaded your last sound from the Browser’s File Tree View, the list will contain
all sounds of the last selected folder. If you loaded your last sound from the
Browser’s Database View, the list will contain all Search Results that fit the
given set of attributes. Finally, if you loaded your sound from the Program
Change List, the list will show all sounds contained in that list. The small icon
at the menu’s left will indicate the list’s mode. (See section 4.10 for more
information about the Browser.)
The two small up and down arrows at the menu’s right allow you to step
through the list without opening the popup menu.

MASSIVE – 31
Voices
The Voices indicator shows two numbers: the first indicates the number of
voices currently being played in MASSIVE, while the second indicates the
maximum number of voices available, which can be set in the Voicing Page in
the Center Window (see section 4.8.1 for more on how to set this up; section
4.1 contains additional information). Note that the maximum number of voices
here is a theoretical limit; the actual number of voices you can use in practice
for a given preset depends on the complexity of the patch and the speed of
your computer. (See the CPU section below.)

MIDI
The MIDI indicator shows which MIDI channel MASSIVE is currently receiving
messages on. If OMNI is displayed here, MASSIVE will receive messages on
all 16 available MIDI channels. Select which MIDI channel to use by clicking
here.

CPU
The CPU Load Indicator shows you how much of your computer’s CPU resources
MASSIVE is currently using, expressed as a percentage. This will change
depending on the particular preset you have loaded, as each preset will require
more or less CPU power depending on how it is configured.
As you play more notes you will notice the CPU meter rise. If the CPU overloads
or you notice the graphic interface starting to get sluggish, just release a
few notes. The audio output may also become grainy or distorted if you are
using too much of your CPU power. In this case you should try increasing
the latency/buffer size of your soundcard. If you are running MASSIVE as a
standalone program, you can adjust this in the Audio and MIDI Settings dialog,
accessible from the File menu. On a Mac, you can simply adjust the Latency
slider left or right to increase or decrease the latency. On a PC, you can click
the ASIO Setup button in order to open the control panel of the soundcard
you are using, where you can make adjustments to the audio buffer size. (Note
that some PC soundcards may require you to quit all open audio programs
first before allowing you to adjust the buffer size.)

Panic
The Panic button (labeled with a small “!” exclamation point) will stop the
sound and reinitialize all internal DSP parameters. If something unexpectedly
strange, loud or unpleasant happens, don’t panic: just click this!

32 – MASSIVE
Save and Save As
Further to the right from the Preset Selector popup menu, there are two
shortcut buttons labeled Save and Save as. These will allow you to quickly
save your sounds without having to access the File menu.

The View buttons

Moving further to the right, there are three buttons which allow you to switch
between different views in MASSIVE: Browser, Attributes and Synth. When
you click the Synth button, you will be returned to the main view of all
the synthesizer controls in MASSIVE. (This is the same view you see when
MASSIVE first starts up.)
Clicking on the Browser or Attributes buttons will switch to views that let
you work with MASSIVE’s Browser, where you can save, rename, delete, and
describe the factory presets along with any presets you may have created
yourself. See section 4.10 for more information about how the Browser
works.

4.4. Oscillator Section

The generation of sound in MASSIVE begins from the Oscillator Section, which
can be found at the left-hand side of the interface. It includes three wavetable
oscillators, a modulation oscillator that can be used to modulate any or all of
these wavetable oscillators, a noise generator, and a feedback section.

MASSIVE – 33
4.4.1. Wavetable oscillators
Three wavetable oscillators form the basis of sound generation in MASSIVE.
In this type of synthesis, numerical representations of various types of basic
waveforms are stored in wavetables. Instead of directly computing a sine
wave, for example, a wavetable oscillator uses a digital representation of a
sine wave stored in memory. This synthesis technique is similar to sampling:
instead of an actual audio source, a digital representation or “recording” of it
is used. Selecting a wavetable is like selecting a waveform on a classic analog
synthesizer, like a sine wave or sawtooth wave.
MASSIVE uses a particular form of wavetable: each wavetable contains not
only one waveform, but at least two of them. Think of these wavetables in
two dimensions. The horizontal axis represents time, and the “recorded”
waveforms run from left to right on the table just as in any sample editor:
playback starts from the left, and when one complete waveform cycle has
been played from left to right, the playback jumps back to the beginning at
the left to loop the waveform.
Along the vertical axis, on the other hand, there are different waveforms
one above another, like the tracks in a multi-track sequencer: at the bottom
there is one waveform and at the top there is another one. Between them
are a series of intermediate waveforms that gradually morph from the bottom
waveform shape to the top.
The vertical position can be controlled to adjust the sound by using the
Wavetable Position Control. For instance, imagine a wavetable where you have
a pulse waveform shape at the “bottom” and a sawtooth waveform shape at
the “top.” Turning the Wt-position control from left to right now slowly morphs
the waveform shape from pulse to sawtooth.
This method of synthesis allows for highly flexible shifting combinations of
various waveforms as each oscillator can be made to gradually morph from
one type of waveform to another.
In order to get a feel for the kinds of sounds you can create with wavetables,
just load a wavetable into one of the oscillators and start tweaking the oscillator
controls. You’ll immediately hear the sonic results, and you’ll be able to get
a feel for what the controls do very quickly.

4.4.2. Wavetable Controls

Each oscillator has three knobs and two popup menus that control its
functioning.

34 – MASSIVE
You can choose the specific wavetable to use for each oscillator by using the
popup menu at top left. Here you will see a list of all the different wavetables
you can choose from, a wide variety of different choices and sounds. You can
also go through the wavetables in order by using the Prev and Next buttons
here.
You can control the selection of the specific waveform to be played from the
oscillator by using the Wavetable Position Control knob. Turning this knob
scans through all of the waveforms included in the wavetable. The number
of individual waveforms represented in each table can range from only 2 to
as many as 128 or more.
Complex sweeping effects can be obtained by routing one of the modulation
sources in MASSIVE to control the Wavetable Position knob, thus causing
the waveform to constantly morph and change. This is the kind of synthesis
technique associated with classic wavetable synthesizers such as the Waldorf
PPG Wave.
Try modulating the Wavetable Position knob with one of MASSIVE’s LFOs and
you can hear how the sound morphs from one waveform to another. Here’s
how to set it up:
• Click on the Modulation Handle following the name of the Modulation
Source you want to use. Then drag the mouse towards the Wavetable
Position knob and release the button over one of the Modulation Slots
below it.
• After making the assignment, you will see a small green numeral appear
in the Modulation Slot under the Wt-position knob. The numeral indicates
which LFO has been assigned to the slot.
• Now you can adjust the modulation range by clicking on the assigned
modulator slot and dragging up or down. As you do so, you will see a
colored ring appear around the Wt-position knob to indicate the active
range of the modulation. Also make sure to turn up the Amp control in
the LFO page itself to adjust the magnitude of effect.
The effect you will hear here depends primarily on which wavetable you have
selected.
Even more complex overlapping phasing effects are possible by applying this
same technique to more than one oscillator simultaneously!

MASSIVE – 35
The Pitch display allows you to tune the oscillator up or down in frequency,
adjusting it by semitones and cents (hundredths of a semitone). Pitch can
also be modulated by routing a modulation source to one of the modulation
destination slots just below it, allowing you to create powerful vibrato and
arpeggiation effects.
To create a rapid sequence/arpeggio effect, route the Stepper modulator to
pitch and assign it to a wider pitch range. First click on the Modulation Handle
to the right of the Stepper in the Center Window, then drag the cursor to the
Modulation Slot under the Pitch Display and release. You will see a small
green numeral appear corresponding to the Stepper. Then click and drag on
the small display which appears to the right, indicating the range over which
the Stepper modulator will be active. (You also need to set the Amp control
in the Stepper Page itself, this sets the amount of modulation sent from the
Stepper.) This will cause MASSIVE to play a looping sequence of distinct
pitches every time you play a MIDI note. (See also section 4.8.2 on modulation
sources for more on the Stepper and how it works.)
The Intensity knob for each oscillator gives you a number of ways of shaping
the wavetable read-out, depending on which oscillator mode is selected in
the right-hand popup menu.
Several different modes are available including Spectrum, Formant, and
three Bend modes. The default selection is Spectrum mode. In this mode
the Intensity control reduces the higher-frequency harmonics heard in the
selected waveform. This functions similarly to a low-pass filter cutoff, even
though the algorithm behind it is different from a standard filter design. This
is illustrated below: the upper image displays a wave with minimum Intensity
setting; the lower one has a maximum Intensity value. As you can see, when
turning down the Intensity value, the square wave gradually becomes a sine
wave, i.e. only the fundamental sine wave remains.

When any of the Bend modes are chosen, the Intensity knob will shape the
readout curve of the wavetables. Normally, the wavetable is read out at constant
speed. With the Bend modes you can raise and lower the readout speed
depending on the position within the wavetable, e.g. slow at the beginning

36 – MASSIVE
and fast at the end. Visually, this is displayed below, taking BendB mode as
an example.
• The middle image (Intensity knob at mid position) shows the unaltered
waveform.
• The upper image (Intensity turned to the left) visualizes a fast readout
at the beginning and end of the waveform, i.e. the wave is compressed
at the ends while it is stretched in the middle
• The lower image shows the inverse effect (Intensity turned to the right).
Here, the central part is compressed while the ends are stretched.

BendA mode only uses the two upper settings, i.e. the Intensity knob only
morphs between the upper image (controller at the left) and the middle image
(controller at the right). The third bend mode, finally, only interpolates between
the middle image (Intensity at the left) and the lower image (Intensity at the
right).
The sonic result of these bend modes depends completely on the wavetable
you have selected; it is impossible to describe the effect in general. Just keep
in mind that you can always use the bend modes to vary the basic waveforms
provided with MASSIVE. Some wavetables also react in very interesting ways
to modulation of the Intensity knob. This can cause very subtle changes of the
sound’s frequency spectrum.
When Formant mode is chosen, Intensity controls the additional transposition
of waveform formants. In practice this sounds a bit like the effect achieved with
two oscillators where the master oscillator synchronizes the slave oscillator’s
phase and the Intensity control then changes the transposition of the slave
oscillator. Try modulating the Intensity control with one of MASSIVE’s modulation
sources: this will change the sound’s formant while the pitch still remains
stable, simulating the sound of morphing vowels.
MASSIVE – 37
4.4.3. Amplification and Routing
The Amp knob controls the output volume of the oscillator. Use the three
Amp controls (one for each oscillator) to control the relative balance of each
oscillator within the overall sound. For example, try routing an LFO to the
Amp knobs to modulate their values and cause the relative balance of the
oscillators to shift and change as you hold down a single MIDI note. You can
set this up like this:
• First click the Modulation Handle of one of the LFOs in the Center
Window and drag the cursor to one of the Modulation Slots under
the Amp knob for OSC1, then release the mouse button. You should
see a small colored numeral appear in the target Modulation Slot
corresponding to the LFO that you have assigned.
• Then, click on the numeral and drag the mouse up or down; you should
see a colored band appear around the Amp knob. This indicates the
range over which the LFO will modulate OSC1’s output amplitude. Also
make sure to check the Amp control of the LFO page to adjust the
magnitude of the effect.
• To simultaneously modulate the output of a second oscillator, repeat the
above procedure, only use a different LFO as the modulation source,
and route it to modulate the Amp knob controlling the output of OSC2
instead of OSC1.
Now try playing a note on your MIDI keyboard to hear the result. You should
be able to hear two distinct waveforms mixed in the sound, one from each
oscillator. However, the relative balance of each waveform in the sound will
gradually change, as the output amplitude of each oscillator is modulated by
one of the LFOs.
You can create a tremolo effect by routing the same LFO to the Amp knobs
of all of the oscillators at once.
38 – MASSIVE
Each oscillator also has a vertical Routing Fader at the right edge labeled
F1-F2. This controls the balance of the oscillator’s output into either filter 1
or filter 2 or a mix of both. The filters in turn may be routed in either serial
or parallel, or a combination of both (see more on this in section 4.5 on
MASSIVE’s Filters below).

4.4.4. Modulation oscillator

This oscillator generates sine wave modulation source signals in the audible
range. Its output can be used for ring, phase- and Wt-position modulation
of the main oscillators, as well as a modulation source for filter frequency
modulation (FM) effects. This oscillator is a perfect tool for sculpting aggressive,
cutting sounds!

Ring modulation is a well-known technique within electronic music since the

1950s. Its name is derived from early analog circuits, as the diodes were
connected in a ring-like shape. Ring modulation combines two audio signals
in a way such that their frequencies are interrelated, creating new frequency
components in the signal; these are called sidebands. They can be defined as
the sum and difference of the various frequency components of the two source
signals. Practically speaking, ring-modulating one of MASSIVE’s main oscillators
usually creates bell-like, metallic sounds. Try detuning the modulation oscillator
when using the ring modulator; for example, tune the modulation oscillator up
or down by a tritone (6 semitones) for some interesting results.
The Phase modulation implemented in MASSIVE is sonically equivalent to the
familiar frequency modulation or FM synthesis technique. The modulation
oscillator acts as the modulator while the main oscillator becomes the carrier.
You can use the phase modulation capacities of MASSIVE to create classic
bass sounds, for instance. Try modulating the modulation amount with a
fast envelope, e.g. to create very high modulation amounts at the beginning
that then decay rapidly. This will produce an initial click when the sound is
triggered, increasing its rhythmic presence and clarity.
Finally, Position modulation is a new and unique type of modulation, made
possible by the design of MASSIVE’S new wavetable engine. The modulation
is more audible the more the main oscillator’s wavetable differs from the
modulation oscillator’s sine wave. By enhancing the differences of the waves
you can make the main oscillator’s sound rougher. This can be used to establish

MASSIVE – 39
signals that sound like a bowed (or blown) instrument that has some “surface
noise” in its sound. Also try detuning or transposing the modulation oscillator
to vary the effect.
Filter frequency modulation allows you to modulate the frequency of one of
the filters with the Modulation Oscillator. Try setting up the Filter FM like this
for some interesting bass sounds:
• Set Filter 1 to be modulated by Filter FM by clicking on the appropriate
box (1) in the Modulation Oscillator Section. Choose the Daft filter for
this example.
• Transpose the modulation oscillator down by one octave (12 semitones)
by clicking and dragging with the mouse.
• Now assign one of the Envelopes to modulate the oscillator: click on the
modulation handle to the right of one of the Envelopes in the Center
Window, move the cursor to one of the modulation handles under the
Filter FM control and click again to make the assignment. Click and
drag on the small blue numeral that appears here to set the modulation
range.
• Then try adjusting the controls on the Envelope like this: decrease the
Attack Time Control and increase the Attack Level Control, then reduce
the Decay time and increase the Decay level, then set the Sustain level
to minimum.
This will create an initial click, especially effective for bass sounds.
Note that you can set a distinct target in this section for each modulation
type. You will see a different label on the control knob here in this section
depending on which mode you currently have selected. However, note that
there is still only one modulation oscillator, so if you change the pitch for the
ring modulation, this will also affect the frequency of the filter’s modulation
and so on.
Also, remember that the modulation oscillator can also be modulated itself in
pitch and amount by all available modulation sources such as the envelopes
and LFOs, allowing for even more complex modulated sounds. Each modulation
mode can be affected by a different modulation source as well. For example,
an envelope can control the amount of ring modulation on OSC1 while an
LFO changes the amount of phase modulation on OSC2. Try using very slow
LFO speeds to modulate this control; this will achieve very slowly changing,
subtly morphing sounds.
By default, the modulation oscillator is also pitchtracked, which means that
tonal playability of ring modulation sounds is easily achieved.

40 – MASSIVE
4.4.5. Noise Section
The Noise Section incorporates the sound of a noise generator into MASSIVE.
There is a Noisetable popup menu at the top of the Noise Section allowing
you to choose between different noise types (based on samples). The Color
knob allows you to change the coloration of the noise by shifting the overall
frequency spectrum upwards or downwards, while the Amp knob adjusts the
volume. A Routing Fader just like the ones in the Oscillator Section allows
you to control how much of the output signal is sent to Filter 1 and Filter 2.
The controls in the Noise Section can be modulated by any of the modulation
sources.

Why would you want to add noise to a synthesizer sound? One reason is that
some types of sounds, for example “unpitched” sounds such as electronic
percussion and drums, are not based on a pitched waveform but rather a
dense cluster of frequencies that are not harmonically related. The synthesis
of these types of sounds requires a “noise generator” that produces all audio
frequencies simultaneously, or some variation of this concept. Filtering the
output of a noise oscillator can produce many variations on this type of sound.
Many of the most popular synthesized drum sounds of all time, such as the
Roland TR808 and 909, were created using this technique.
Here are some creative ideas for using the Noise section:
• Try routing the Performer or Stepper modulation sources to control the
Amp control in the Noise Section to create rhythmic hihats or other
unpitched percussion effects.
• Route an LFO to control the Amp control of the Noise section and
designate a relatively narrow modulation range. Use a fairly slow Rate
setting on the LFO to create a subtly varied crackling environment,
suitable for soft, intimate sounds.

4.4.6. Feedback Section

The Feedback Section allows you to re-route the signal from any of several
different insert points back to the filter input. The point that the signal is
routed back from can be chosen in the Routing Page of the Center Window
(see section 4.1). The signal’s source is then shown within the Feedback
section.

MASSIVE – 41
In the Feedback Section, you can adjust the level of output using the Amp
level knob, and adjust the ratio of the output between filter 1 and filter 2
using the Routing Fader. The Amp knob has 2 modulation slots where you
can attach a modulation source to change the output.
A typical case where you might want to make use of the Feedback Section is
to create variable saturation effects. Try setting it up like this:
• First click the Routing Page in the Center Window so you can see the
diagram of MASSIVE’s signal flow.
• Click one of the small FB icons in this diagram in order to select the
source of the feedback signal. For this example, let’s choose the one at
the top center of the diagram, a bit to the right of the Filter 1 icon.
• To hear the feedback signal, turn up the Amp control in the Feedback
Section. You’ll hear a heavier, saturated signal.
• To create changing saturation effects, try assigning one of the modulation
sources like an LFO to the Amp knob. Click on the Modulation Handle
on the right part of the LFO tab and drag the mouse to the small black
Modulation Slot under the Amp knob. Then click and drag on the
small green numeral that appears to define the range of the Amplitude
modulation. Also make sure to check the level of the Amp knob on the
LFO page; if this is set to far left, you will hear no effect!
Note that due to the analog-style approach of the filter saturation, higher
levels routed back through the feedback bus can change the filter behavior
significantly and generate very different audio results through any effects that
you might be using.
Another case where you might want to use the feedback bus would be to smooth
out the resonance peak of a filter. Try smoothing the sound by increasing the
feedback level back into the same filter bus like this:
• First, in the Filter Section, choose the low-pass filter LP2 in Filter 1
by clicking on the popup menu in the header.
• Now try turning the Resonance knob to about 50%. Move the Cutoff knob
back and forth while playing a note on your MIDI keyboard. You should
be able to hear the resonant peak around the cutoff frequency.

42 – MASSIVE
 • Now, as in the above example, click the Routing Page in the Center
Window so you can see the diagram of MASSIVE’s signal flow. Then
click one of the small FB icons in this diagram in order to select the
source of the feedback signal. Again, choose the one at the top center
of the diagram, a bit to the right of the Filter 1 icon.
• Turn the Routing Fader at the right edge of the Feedback Section all
the way up, towards where it is labeled “F1.” In this position, all of
the output of the Feedback Section will be routed back into the input
of Filter 1.
• To hear the feedback signal added in, turn up the Amp control in the
Feedback Section. You may hear a heavier, saturated signal; however,
the higher level of feedback signal as you increase the Amp knob will
drive the filter circuit hotter and the increasing overtones in the sound
will tend to mask the sharpness of the resonance.

4.5. Filter Section

MASSIVE features two separate filter busses that can be routed in serial or
parallel. You can insert one filter of any available type in each bus by selecting
an entry from the filter drop-down menu. Eleven different filter types are
available, including standard low-pass, high-pass and band-pass filters as
well as comb, scream, and others.
Note that the filter section is one of MASSIVE’S most important sound design
features, one of the principal means by which you can sculpt the sound.
Although of course the wavetable engine that produces the raw signal is also
very important for the final sonic impression, it is the filters that often give a
synthesizer its distinctive sound. When programming new sounds with MASSIVE,
the creative potentials of the filter section should never be ignored.

4.5.1. Routing
Note that each sound source in the Oscillator section (Osc 1-3, Noise, Feedback)
has its own Routing Fader by which its output into filter 1 and filter 2 can be
adjusted. Complex sonic manipulations are possible simply by varying how
much of each oscillator’s output goes to each filter, and how the outputs of
the filters themselves are routed within the filter section. For example, you
might want to try sending the output of Osc1 and Osc2 to Filter 1, while the
output of Osc3 is sent to Filter 2. In this case you would move the Routing
Faders for OSC1 and OSC2 all the way to the top, while the crossfader for
OSC3 would be set to the bottom.

MASSIVE – 43
Note that you can send your signal through the filter busses via a serial or
parallel routing. When you use a parallel routing, Filter 1 receives all signals
that are sent to F1 by using the oscillators’ Routing Faders described above;
in contrast, Filter 2 receives all signals sent to F2. Both signals are then
processed independently. A serial routing, however, routes the output signal
of Filter 1 to the input of Filter 2, i.e. the signal us filtered twice. MASSIVE
can blend between both routing modes with the Input Fader (labeled F2) at
the left of both filters. It controls the signal source of Filter 2: Moved to the
top, Filter 2 will use the signal of Filter 1 as its input (serial routing). Moved
all the way to the bottom of its range, Filter 2 will use its independent input
signal as controlled by the oscillators’ Routing Faders.

Note that there is also a Mix Control at the right side of the filter section. It
controls which filter’s signal is used as the filter section’s output. You can
blend between the first filter’s signal (at the top) and the second filter’s signal
(at the bottom); in between, both signals are mixed.
Note that this control of the filter section’s output signal interacts with the
Input Fader. You can set up a completely serial routing in which 100% of the
output of Filter 1 is passed on to the input of Filter 2; set it up like this:

44 – MASSIVE
 • First, the Input Fader has to be turned up to the top of its range, to the
direction marked “Ser” for serial. This will direct the output of Filter
1 into the input of Filter 2, though the output of Filter 1 will still be
heard at the output of the Filter Section as well.
• Then, the Mix fader has to be set to allow output from filter 2 only so
that we do not hear any direct output from Filter 1, but only after it
has been routed through Filter 2. Turn the Mix fader all the way up to
the top of its range, marked “Mix1.”
For a completely parallel routing you need to move the Input Fader to the
bottom and the Mix Fader to mid position.

4.5.2. Filter Types

MASSIVE provides you with a wide range of different filter types to use.
Each filter has the customary Cutoff and Resonance controls, as well as a
Bandwidth control which controls the width of the frequency spread of some
filter types such as the band-pass filter. However, for some filter types the
Bandwidth control does not apply; in this case this control will be labeled
“n.a.” instead.
Here is some more specific information regarding the different types of filters
available:
• LP2/LP4: "normal" low-pass filters, damping all frequencies above the
cutoff by 12/24db per octave. Try using these to remove high-frequency
content and make your sound less “brilliant.”
• HP2/HP4: "normal" high-pass filters, damping all frequencies below the
cutoff by 12/24db per octave. Use these to remove low frequencies
from the sound
• AP: this type is an all-pass filter; all frequencies are passed through,
but the phase of the signal is inverted. It also features resonance like
the HP and LP filters
• DNA: this is a double-notch filter. Try using this filter to simulate phaser-
like sounds, for example.
• BP/BR: these are band-pass/band-reject filters with 12-db damping/
octave at each side and adjustable bandwidth. In this type of filter,
all frequencies around the cutoff within a certain frequency band are
rejected or passed through (depending on which filter you are using).
These filter types are very useful for focusing in and modifying certain
specific parts of the frequency spectrum. They can, for example, be
used to simulate vowel morphings. Cannot be used for filter frequency
modulation.

MASSIVE – 45
 • Scream: this is a type of low-pass filter with additional internal feedback
added; the Scream parameter controls the amount of this feedback.
Use this type to create more analog-sounding, dirty filter sounds that
employ a strong resonance peak. Cannot be used for filter frequency
modulation.
• Daft: another type of low-pass filter with its own particular sound.
This filter is very responsive to filter frequency modulation with the
Modulation Oscillator.
• Comb: this is a comb filter with internal low-pass damping of the
feedback path. The Feedback and Dampening are adjustable; if the
Feedback control is turned completely to the left, there is no filtering
effect. This filter often has an effect similar to flanging, especially when
the cutoff is modulated slowly at medium feedback settings. Cannot
be used for filter frequency modulation.
You may find it quite useful when designing your sounds to route a MIDI knob
or fader to one of the Filter Cutoff controls by using the Macro Control section
(see section 4.2.5 of this manual), giving you a quick and easy way to filter
out or emphasize a part of the frequency spectrum.
Other ideas you might want to experiment with include:
• Note that all filters (except the band-pass and band-reject filters) are
very sensitive regarding their input level. This can be used to create
very dynamic sounds that change their characteristic completely instead
of only becoming louder when being played with high velocity.
• To add a “cutting” or “biting” edge to your sound, try setting up an
envelope with a fast attack and use this to modulate the filter cutoff;
set the filter resonance to a relatively high level to control the amount
of this effect.
• Another interesting idea to experiment with is to set up a parallel
routing of the filters as seen above and set each of the filters to the
comb setting. Set up a slow-moving LFO for modulation of the filter
cutoff and use a medium high feedback setting for each filter for some
interesting effects.
• Try modulating the cutoff control with the Vel modulation source in
the Macro Controls section. (See section 4.2.5 for more on how this
controller works.)
• Use the Scream filter with a low Scream setting to help create dirty
bass sounds.

46 – MASSIVE
 • Choose the allpass filter and set the Resonance control to around 50%.
Then try modulating the filter cutoff with an LFO to create some phase-
like effects.

4.6. Insert Effects

There are two different types of effects in MASSIVE: Insert Effects, which can
be placed at various points in the signal chain (see section 4.1 on Routing),
and Master Effects, which come at the very end of the chain. We will first
discuss the Insert Effects in this section, while the Master Effects will be
covered in section 4.7.3 below.
You can select and control the Insert Effects using the Popup Menus, Control
Knobs and Modulation Slots in the Insert Section of the interface.

Insert 1 and 2 represent two different audio effects. You can use the Effects
Popup Menus to choose the effect you want to use for each (if any). The two
knobs control various parameters of each effect, depending on which effect
you have selected. These knobs will be labeled according to their function for
the effect you have chosen. There is one Modulation Slot and one Sidechain
present here for each knob as well; these can be used to modulate each
control with any of the available modulation sources, just as we have seen
with the other controls in MASSIVE. For more information on how to set this
up, check section 4.2.

4.6.1. Routing
As mentioned above, either of the Insert Effects can be placed at a number
of different points in the signal chain. Where the effects are placed will make
a crucial difference to the final sound. Experiment with placing the various
effects at different points to get a feel for the sonic modifications you can
achieve.
You can choose where to place the Insert Effects in the signal chain by using
the Routing Page in the Center Window (see section 4.8 for more on the
Center Window and the various pages it contains).

MASSIVE – 47
As you can see in this picture, there are a number of small buttons labeled
“ins1” and “ins2” present in the Routing Page, placed in various positions
between the oscillators, filters and other components of MASSIVE. These
buttons are the Insert Effects Position Selectors. You can use these to select
where exactly each Insert Effect should be placed to modify the sound. Simply
click one of the buttons labeled “ins1” to select where the Insert 1 effect will
be placed, for example.
Below is some further information about each of the Insert Effects in MASSIVE
and how it functions.

4.6.2. Delay
This is a standard delay that creates an echo type of effect by taking the
incoming signal and delaying it by a certain amount of time before it is passed
on to the next module in the signal chain.
• The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• The Time Control adjusts the delay time: shorter when turned to the
left and longer to the right.
In addition to basic echo-style effects, you can use the Delay to create a
wide variety of sounds depending on the insert point. For example, try using
the Delay within the Feedback bus (see section 4.4.6 for more about the
feedback functions in MASSIVE) to create feedback delay structures. Try
modulating the Time Control just a little bit with one of MASSIVE’s LFOs to
create detuning/vibrato-style effects.

4.6.3. Sample & Hold

This is a “classic” sample and hold effect: It samples the incoming audio
signal at a given time interval, and this sample is held until the next sample
is taken. This results in a “stepped,” temporally quantized audio signal.

48 – MASSIVE
 • The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• The Pitch Control adjusts the time interval (frequency) at which the
signal is sampled; more slowly to the left, and more quickly as you
turn the knob to the right. Slower sample times will result in “deep,”
harsh distortion effects, while higher Pitch Control settings will result
in “high,” subtler distortion sounds.
The Sample & Hold effect can be used to create a variety of different distortion
effects, depending on the settings you choose. Try using low Pitch Control
values to create sounds similar to old digital synthesizers. This is in effect
resampled at a lower sampling rate!
Note that the Pitch Control by default follows the MIDI input pitch. You can
control this within the Center Window’s Keytracking Oscillator Page (see
section 4.8.1).

4.6.4. Bitcrusher
The Bitcrusher is a digital effect that creates distortion in your signal by
reducing the bit depth of the signal.
• The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• The Crush Control adjusts the amount of bit depth reduction, from no
reduction at all when turned to the left, to maximum reduction/distortion
when turned to the right.
You can use this effect to create “digital degradation” sounds such as were
typical with early digital samplers, or to add a slight bit of noise to your sound
when only subtle Crush Control values

4.6.5. Frequency Shifter

Just as its name implies, the Frequency Shifter shifts the frequency of the
incoming signal. This is a common effect found in many analog synthesizer
designs, but is seldom implemented in digital/software-based instruments.
• The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• Pitch Control: Adjusts the amount of frequency shift: downward at the
left, upwards at the right.

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Try using the Frequency Shifter within the Feedback bus to shift the frequency
of the feedback signal and mix it with the main signal. Try modulating the
Pitch Control with the Stepper modulation source to create a stepped series
of melodic or harmonic intervals.
Note that the Pitch Control by default follows the MIDI input pitch. You can
control this within the Center Window’s Keytracking Oscillator Page (see
section 4.8.1).

4.6.6. HPLP
The HPLP effect contains two simple adjustable filters (low-pass and high-
pass), placed one after the other.
• The High-pass Control adjusts the cutoff frequency of the high-pass
filter, filtering out all frequencies lower than the set level.
• The Low-pass Control adjusts the cutoff frequency of the low-pass filter,
filtering all frequencies higher than the set level.
Given that there are already two powerful and flexible Filters included in
MASSIVE, covered earlier in this manual (see section 4.5), you may wonder
why we have also included these additional filters here in the Insert Effects
Section. These simpler filters can be used to quickly and easily narrow the
frequency band of your signal at a particular point in the signal flow by
adjusting the cutoff values of the filters. Also, by using modulation sources
to change the High-pass and Low-pass controls, the frequency band can be
moved, narrowed or widened over time without wasting the more elaborate
dedicated Filters covered earlier.

4.6.7. Sine Shaper

The Sine Shaper insert effect routes your signal through a wave shaper, in
which the signal’s amplitude is mapped to the rising and falling amplitude
of a sine wave.
• The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• The Drive Control adjusts the amount of distortion: less distortion when
turned to the left and thicker, heavier distortion at the right.
Try using the Sine Shaper as a non-linear type of distortion effect. The Sine
Shaper is very sensitive to rapid amplitude changes, such as the “beating”
or “wobbling” sound caused by dissonant harmonic intervals. Compare the
result when you use this effect while using two oscillators tuned apart from
each other at various intervals.

50 – MASSIVE
4.6.8. Parabolic Shaper
The Parabolic Shaper is a waveshaping effect like the Sine Shaper, but with
a different shaping curve: where the sine shaper uses a sine shape, the
parabolic shaper uses an s-like curve. As you turn up the Drive control, the
linear transition becomes a rectangular one, distorting the smooth transitions
of any input curve.
• The Dry/Wet Control adjusts the balance between the unprocessed
(dry) signal at the left and the delayed (wet) signal at the right.
• The Drive Control adjusts the amount of distortion: less distortion when
turned to the left and thicker, heavier distortion at the right.

4.7. Output Sections

The Output Sections in MASSIVE contain modules at the end of the signal
flow primarily concerned with the amplitude of the output signal. There are
also a variety of high quality effects here at the end of the chain, in the Master
Effects Section.

The signal flow in the Output Sections passes first through the Amp Section,
including the Pan Control, then through Master Effect 1, then Master Effect
2, and then finally out through the Master Volume knob. Note that the parallel
voices are combined to a stereo down-mix after the panorama section and
before the master effects. See section 4.1 for more information.
The role of the Bypass Section in the signal chain varies depending on how
the Routing Page is configured. See section 4.1 on Signal Flow for more on
this.

4.7.1. Amp Section

The Amp Section allows you to control the stereo panning and amplitude
(loudness) of the output signal.

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As with most synthesizers, you can trigger single notes by using a MIDI
keyboard or other controller. However, technically speaking, you are not
triggering notes but amplitude envelopes. They start at zero and rise to a peak
value, (mostly) specified by the note’s velocity. When the key is released on
the keyboard, the amplitude envelope decays back to zero. This shape causes
the oscillators’ signal to fade in from zero (no signal heard) to the given peak
amplitude (maximum volume); on the key release the signal fades out again.
The oscillator continues producing a signal, but without the triggered envelope
it is muted. (Note that, due to this mechanism, the amplitude modulation is
tightly connected to the synthesizer’s voicing; refer to section 4.1 for more
information on this.)
MASSIVE provides versatile options for amplitude modulation. You can use
any modulation source (e.g. the Stepper instead of an envelope for rhythmic
amplitudes), and you can also combine two sources, for instance you can fade
in the Stepper’s amplitude modulation with an envelope.
By default, the fourth envelope is assigned to control the amplitude, so you
will see a small blue number “4” appear here when MASSIVE starts up.
However, you can freely assign any modulation source to control this. A second
modulation source can be assigned here as well; in this case, the incoming
signal at both Amplitude Modulation Slots is multiplied, just as in a sidechain
modulation assignment elsewhere in MASSIVE.
Note that there is no amplitude control knob or fader here as such, just as
with a classic synthesizer amplitude envelope: any modulation of the amplitude
controls the output level across the entire available output range. (The Master
Volume Control shapes the overall output loudness at another stage of signal
processing.)
Instead, the main visible control in the Amp Section is the Pan knob. There
are two modulation slots available here for controlling the stereo pan of the
output, the main slot and a sidechain.
You can use modulation of the Amp Section to create all kinds of volume- or
autopan-related effects. The simplest example might be creating a tremolo
effect by routing one of the LFOs to control the amplitude. Try combining this
with a medium-fast LFO as a modulation source for the pan control for some
really interesting effects!

4.7.2. Bypass Section

The Bypass Section allows you to take the direct output of one of the three
oscillators or that of the Noise Section and mix it in with the output from
the rest of the signal chain. (The routing of the Bypass Section is explained

52 – MASSIVE
further in section 4.1 on Signal Flow. You can specify the oscillator to be used
as source of the Bypass signal within the Routing Page of the Center Window
as described in section 4.8.1.)
There are a number of reasons why you might want to do this. For example,
you might create a sound in which one of the oscillators is outputting a clear
subbass type of sound that you want to mix in with other sounds cleanly,
without processing it through all of the other sections.
There is only one control here, a fader that adjusts the level of bypass signal
to be mixed into the output. There are two modulation slots available here,
main and sidechain.
Note that you can also set the point at which the Bypass signal is reintroduced
into the sound, by using the Bypass Target Selector buttons in the Routing
Page of the Center Window. (See section 4.8.1 for more about this.)

4.7.3. Master Effects Section

Following the Amp and Bypass Sections is the Master Effects Section. This
contains two slots in which you can insert a variety of different effects for
modifying the final audio output of MASSIVE. There are two effects slots
here, FX1 and FX2, and you can select a different effect in each. In addition,
there is a dedicated EQ section at the end of the chain. As with the other
sections in MASSIVE, you can bypass any of these Master Effects by using
their Mute switches.
The control knobs visible here depend on which effect you currently have
selected. There are a number of different types of effects available, and
multiple variations of some types. You can select the effect you want from a
popup menu here.
Note that some effects appear here in both mono and stereo versions; mono
versions are indicated with a letter “M” in the name. Also, there are two
modulation slots available for each knob, a regular slot and a sidechain
modulation slot.
Here is some information on the individual effects, along with some description
of their controls. Note that although the functions of the four control knobs
differ between the various effects, the first knob functions as a Dry/Wet
control in all of them.
• Space: a reverb effect. There are two versions, Reverb and Small Reverb.
Both use the same reverb algorithm internally, but the parameters are
mapped to different ranges. These effects can be very effective in
giving a sense of spaciousness to your sounds, but use them carefully:

MASSIVE – 53
 sounds can become less present and lose clarity when too much reverb
is used. Note that you can also try using the dimension expander or
a short delay to create subtle room effects. The controls here enable
you to change various parameters of the reverb space, including Size
(room size, i.e. the length of the reverberation), Density, (the diffusion
of reverberation, a lower density = more echoes) and Color (a filter
to subtly change the sound of the reverberation: left = duller, right =
brighter).
• Flanger: creates classic flanging effects. The signal is slightly delayed
while varying the delay time, and the result is mixed with the original
signal. Controls here include Rate (the speed of the delay time change),
Depth (the amount of delay time variation), and Feedback (the amount
of delayed signal routed back to the input). The stereo version of this
effect uses a phase-inverted modulation signal for left/right imaging;
i.e. when the left signal’s delay time is shortened, the right one’s is
lengthened and vice versa.
• Chorus: creates a chorus effect, i.e. the signal sounds as if it was created
by a choir, with each voice pitched slightly differently. This effect is
technically achieved by delaying the signal and constantly modulating
the delay time. The controls for the Chorus effect include Rate (the
modulation speed), Offset (the main delay time), and Depth (the amount
of delay time modulation). The stereo version of this effect, like the
Flanger, uses a phase-inverted modulation signal (see above). There
is also a Chorus E version on the list; this E stands for “Ensemble.”
This version uses four different modulation signals for a very rich and
smooth chorus effect. Note that of the various phasing effects, i.e.
phaser/chorus/flanger, the chorus is in many ways the most versatile.
Its output seems to merge the most with the dry sound rather than just
sounding like an added effect.
• Phaser: creates a classic phasing sound as with analog gear like the
classic Small Stone phaser. Technically speaking, this effect is created
by routing the signal through several all-pass filters with modulated
frequencies that change the phase of the signal, depending on the
signal’s and the filter’s frequency. When this changed signal is mixed
with the original signal, phase changes create sonically interesting
interference patterns. The controls for the Phaser include Rate (the speed
of the all-pass frequency modulation), Depth (the all-pass frequency
modulation amount), and Feedback (the amount of feedback, a high
feedback increases the intensity of the phaser effect).

54 – MASSIVE
 • Delay: an echo effect. Delay Simple is a stereo delay, with controls for
Damp (a low-pass filter with adjustable cutoff on the delayed signal) and
left and right delay time. Delay Synced is a tempo-synced delay which
in addition to the Damp control also adds a knob to control Feedback
as well as two displays to set up time-synced delays on left and right
(see image below). Try using the Delay Simple effect to simulate very
small room sounds, for example. This can create a subtle spatial effect
without losing the punchy rhythmic quality of the sound. Note that these
Delay effects can be very versatile as the delay times can be freely
modulated by any of MASSIVE’s modulation sources.
• Dimension Expander: a combination of delay and chorus effects. The
Dimension Expander creates very clear room-style spatial effects. The
sound is more diffuse than DelayShort, but less cloudy than the Space
effects.
• Classic Tube: simulates the effect of running your output through a tube
amplifier, to help you create a “warmer” or “dirtier” sound. The Drive
knob controls the amount of input amplification and thus the amount
of distortion in the output signal.
• Tele Tube: another tube amp simulator, a bit softer and a bit more
CPU-intensive than Tube.
• Brauner Tube: another tube amp simulator, a bit brighter sounding than
Tube.
• EQ: an output equalizer. The controls here allow you to adjust the low
shelf/high shelf boost as well as the peak frequency and peak boost.
Note that these controls are flat when they are in the center, zero
position.
Some general creative applications for the Master Effects might include:
• Use the Space effect to add some “air” to the sound; you can also
achieve similar spatial effects with the Dimension Expander.
• Try fattening your sound with the Chorus, Flanger or Phaser.
• Try distorting and dirtying your sound with the various tube amp
simulators.

4.7.4. Master Volume Section

The Master Volume Section is the simplest section in MASSIVE, providing
you with a single knob with which to adjust the master volume. There is also
an output meter that displays the level of the outgoing stereo signal. Note
that it is possible to get digital distortion in your signal here if you overdrive

MASSIVE – 55
the output meter. However, even if you want a distorted sound, you will likely
get better results by using one of the Insert Effects or the Feedback Section;
this Master Volume control should only be used to avoid distortion. For best
results, adjust it so that the loudest peaks in your output signal are near the
top of the meter without actually reaching the top.

4.8. The Center Window

At the center right of the main MASSIVE window, we find the Center Window.
This area is the control center for two important parts of MASSIVE.

For one thing, the Center Window contains the controls and display for all of
MASSIVE’s global parameters. These are visible on the six upper tabs, called
the General Pages.
In addition, the Center Window is the place where you can edit and assign all
internal modulation sources. These are accessible via the eight lower tabs,
called Modulation Pages.

Note that both rows are of equal level and are not cascaded in any way, i.e.
the lower row of tabs is not a row of sub-tabs of the top row.
Unlike the other parts of MASSIVE (which are always visible), only one of these
Pages can be active at a time. This saves screen space for more important
controls that always need to be visible, such as the Oscillators and Filters.
The Center Window is placed centrally so that the modulation handles are in
a central place, close to any potential modulation target. (For more info on
how to establish a modulation assignment, see section 4.1.) To access any of
these Pages, simply click on its tab and all of its controls will be visible.

56 – MASSIVE
In this section we will describe all the controls and parameters for each Page
of the Center Window.

4.8.1. General Pages

The General Pages can be opened by clicking on the upper row of tabs. We
will describe them here in order from left to right.

OSC
The OSC Page includes general settings related to the pitch and phase of
MASSIVE’s oscillators.

From left to right, we find several blocks of parameters labeled Glide, Vibrato,
Pitchbend and Phase, respectively. Let’s look at these one at a time.
The Glide block of parameters controls the glide between sequentially played
notes. Setting the glide controls allows smooth transitions between notes with
different pitches. The block contains a switch and a knob:
• The Glide Mode Switch allows you to select from two glide modes.
In Equal Mode, all glides are equal in time, no matter how large the
interval. In Rate Mode, the glide depends on the interval between the
consecutive notes: if the two pitches are near each other, the glide will
be shorter, and if the two pitches are further from each other, the glide
will take longer.
• The Glide Time Control adjusts the time needed by the glide function to
go from the first note pitch to the following note pitch. When the knob
is at full left, there is no glide at all, the pitch jumping all of a sudden
to the next one. When you turn the knob to the right, the glide time
increases and makes the transition between the notes smoother.

MASSIVE – 57
The Vibrato block controls the pitch oscillation around the base pitch of the
played note:
• The Vibrato Rate Control sets the speed of the oscillation.
• The Vibrato Depth Control defines the amplitude of the oscillation.
At the top of this block, a Mono Button forces the vibrato to be monophonic,
i.e. the same oscillation is used to cause the vibrato for all played notes. In
other words, when this button is activated, you will hear the pitch of all played
notes oscillating together (in phase).
The Pitchbend block controls MASSIVE’s response to your master keyboard’s
pitch bend wheel (or corresponding MIDI controller). In the Up and Down fields,
you can set the upper and lower values for the pitch bend range when the pitch
bend wheel is at full up or full down on your master keyboard, respectively.
You can even set a Down value higher than the Up value here, thus inverting
the action of your pitch bend wheel.
The Phase block controls the relative phase of MASSIVE’s three oscillators
and modulation oscillator. At the block’s bottom, the Restart Via Gate Button
allows you to set each oscillator to restart at its original phase each time you
hit a key. If this Button is activated, the phases are restarted with each new
incoming note. (If the Button is deactivated, the phases are continuously
played, and when you hit a key, the oscillators take the current phase as
starting phase.) The Phase Graphic Display shows four lines corresponding to
the four oscillators in MASSIVE (the three main oscillators plus the modulation
oscillator). The x-axis represents the phases. On each line, a Phase Slider
indicates the current phase for each oscillator. You can modify this phase by
dragging the Phase Slider to the left or to the right.
The right part of the interface contains an innovative and powerful feature: an
internal envelope that can directly modulate the Pitch parameters themselves.
Note that you can use all available modulation sources, e.g. the Stepper,
to modulate the OSC Page’s parameters; but you can also use this internal
modulation source for basic tasks. For instance, the envelope can be used to
slowly increase the vibrato depth, naturally fading in the vibrato after some
time.
This envelope is depicted in the upper right part of the Pitch Page, on the
Internal Envelope Graphic Display. Above, you see a header similar to the
Modulation Pages tab headers, and a modulation handle next to it: You can use
the handle like any other modulation handle, particularly to modulate the Glide
Time Control and the Vibrato Rate and Depth Controls of this OSC Page.

58 – MASSIVE
In the lower part of this block, you will find two parameters to control this
envelope: the Attack Time Fader adjusts the attack of the envelope, and the
Decay Time Fader adjusts its decay. All adjustments are represented on the
Internal Envelope Graphic Display.

Keytracking Oscillator
The Keytracking Oscillator Page allows you to define the pitch response of the
oscillators to the pitch of the incoming MIDI notes. On an acoustic keyboard
instrument (let’s say a piano), the further to the left that you play a note, the
lower the pitch of the sound. The further to the right you play on the keyboard,
the higher the pitch. Thus, the pitch follows the position on the keyboard in a
linear way. With the Keytracking Oscillator Page, you can alter this behavior
for each of MASSIVE’s oscillators.

The Keytracking Oscillator Page is divided into two parts: at the left, a Mapping
Area shows how the current keytracking response is set up; on the right, a
Mapping Selector allows you to map this keytracking response to the individual
oscillators.
Two keytracking responses are available:
• The Linear Response is the usual keytracking response (with the lower
pitches on the left and the higher ones on the right like an acoustic
keyboard), represented by a simple line going from (0.0) to (127.127).
This response cannot be edited.

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 • The User Response is freely assignable and you can tweak it according
to your wishes.
You can choose to assign one or the other of these keytracking responses
for each oscillator individually. This is done in the Mapping Selector. This
is basically a selection matrix. You can assign the Linear or User Response
(represented by the two columns here) to one or several targets including the
three main Oscillators, the Modulation Oscillator and the Insert Effects (as
shown in the five rows here).
To assign a response to a specific target, click on the corresponding box in the
matrix. For example, if you want to assign the User Response to Oscillator 3,
click on the box in the column User and the row OSC 3 so that it is activated
(you will see it turn blue). In this case, the other box in the same row is
automatically deactivated (since only one or the other of them can be active
at one time). If you click on the box again, it is deactivated. You can decide to
deactivate both boxes on a row, removing all keytracking for this target. The
outgoing pitch is then set to 64, no matter what the incoming pitch is.
The Mapping Area graphically represents how the MIDI incoming pitch is
interpreted to produce the outgoing pitch. The horizontal axis shows the
incoming pitch, and the vertical axis shows the resulting outgoing pitch. At the
bottom, a virtual keyboard represents the entire pitch range. The numbers on
both axes are the MIDI note numbers, from 0 to 127. When you hit a key on
your master keyboard, a vertical line appears on the Mapping Area showing
the pitch of that incoming note.
Each time you click on a box in the Mapping Selector to activate or deactivate
it, the Mapping Area displays the new keytracking response. If you click on
a box in the User column, you will see a set of Breakpoints appearing on the
Mapping Area’s keytracking response line. You can edit this User Response
in the Mapping Area by using these breakpoints.
You can move the three central breakpoints on both axis, and the first and last
Breakpoints on the vertical axis, by simply clicking and dragging them with
the mouse. You also have the following options to make your editing easier:
• Alt-dragging a breakpoint forces it to move on the vertical axis only,
allowing you to define an output pitch for a particular input pitch.
• Shift-dragging a point allows you to make finer adjustments.
In this way you can define new response segments between each Breakpoint
pair as in this image:

60 – MASSIVE
When you click on a Breakpoint, both the x- and y-axis display small lines
pointing to their coordinates. The coordinate numerical values are also displayed
in the two small fields at the right of the horizontal axis and at the bottom
of the vertical axis.
If you double-click on a particular Breakpoint, you will delete the whole User
Response and replace it by a horizontal line at the Breakpoint’s vertical level,
thus creating a constant keytracking response at this particular outgoing
pitch.

Keytracking Filter
The Keytracking Filter Page is very similar to the Keytracking Oscillator Page
that we just described. It also deals with keytracking responses to incoming
MIDI notes. However, it does not control the oscillators’ outgoing pitch but
rather affects the parameters of MASSIVE’s Filters.
This can be useful, for example, if you have low-pass filter shaping your sound:
if the filter cutoff was constant, you would have louder sounds in the lower
part of the key range, and softer (or even muted) sounds in its higher part,
since only the low frequencies pass through the filter. By allowing the filter
cutoff value to follow the incoming MIDI note pitch, the filter’s effect (how it
modifies the sound) stays relevant for every incoming note.

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You will find the same basic layout structure here as in the Keytracking
Oscillator Page: a Mapping Area on the left, and a Mapping Selector on the
right. Please refer to the above section about the Keytracking Oscillator Page
for detailed information on how this Mapping system works. Here we will
describe only how the Keytracking Filter Page differs from the Keytracking
Oscillator Page.
In the first place, the Mapping Selector here looks slightly different:
• Instead of a Linear and a User Response, we find here two editable
User Responses, labeled Set 1 and Set 2.
• The possible targets here are the two Filters, instead of the
Oscillators.
Another difference you will notice is that this Mapping Area features two
keytracking response lines, instead of only one. They allow you to control
two different parameters of the corresponding filter. The light blue line refers
to the Filter’s first parameter and the dark blue line refers to its second
parameter.
For all other controls and behaviors, please refer to the previous section about
the Keytracking Oscillator Page.

Voicing
The Voicing Page allows you to control various parameters dealing with voices
and polyphony. Note that section 4.1 explains voicing in more detail.

62 – MASSIVE
At left, the Voicing Area allows you to define the polyphonic scheme that
you want to use for MASSIVE. From top to bottom, we find the following
controls.
The Voice Maximum Control defines the maximal number of voices that can
be played at the same time before the oldest is cut off. The range of this
control is from 4 to 64. To modify this value, click on the number field and
drag your mouse up or down, or double-click the field and enter the value via
your computer keyboard. Be aware that each voice needs to be computed: the
higher this value, the higher the CPU load shown in the navigation bar.
The Voice Maximum Control is generally known as polyphony, but this does not
necessary imply that you can play as many notes at the same time as what is
shown in this number field. This parameter controls the maximal number of
voices, not the number of notes: if each pressed key triggers two voices, the
maximal number of notes that you can play at the same time with your MIDI
keyboard will actually be half of the maximal number of voices. Thus, the
actual polyphony depends on the maximal number of voices and the number
of voices triggered by each single note.
This is exactly what the Voice Unisono Control does: it adjusts the number of
voices that should be played for each key that is pressed on the keyboard.
If the Voice Unisono Control is set to 1, only one voice is played when you
hit a key; if it is set to a value higher than 1, then pressing a key will trigger
as many voices as you have set. This control allows you to create thicker-
sounding “stacked” sounds. Actually, though, if these unison voices were
strictly identical, would not be of much musical interest. But MASSIVE allows
you to modify the additional voices, and create some very interesting effects.
This is called unisono spreading, and this is controlled by the Unisono Spread
Area, which is explained further below.

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Below these two number fields, we find the Mono/Poly Switch. This switch
lets you choose from three polyphonic modes:
• Polyphonic allows you to play several notes at the same time, within
the limits set by the Voice Maximum and Unisono Controls.
• Monophonic allows you to play only one note at a time. Note that the
Monophonic mode deals with notes (i.e. pressed keys), not with voices.
Thus, you can use this mode and still have many voices per note, as
set by the Voice Unisono Control. The next key you press will mute the
previous one, with all its voices.
• Monorotate is a special monophonic mode in which two notes are always
played alternatively. If a new note is played while the previous one is
still held, the old note will stop and the new one will start, just as in
the normal monophonic mode described above. However, the old one
will be faded out quickly to ensure that the abrupt stop of this note
will not cause a click. This can be done as the new note is started on
another layer of voices.
Below the Mono Poly Switch is the Trigger Switch. It defines how and whether
the modulation sources are restarted from the beginning:
• Always restarts the modulation sources each time a new MIDI note
message is received.
• Legato restarts the modulation sources whenever a new MIDI note
message is received after the previously played note has been released;
this means that the sources are not re-triggered if the notes are being
played tied, slightly overlapping. This also implies that the previous
note will be automatically stopped when the next note is played, even
if the key has not been released on the keyboard yet.
• Legato Trill restarts the modulation sources whenever a new MIDI note
message is received and all other notes have been released before.
This is convenient when playing trills or other ornaments on a keyboard:
you only need to hit one of the trill notes while holding the other one
constantly. This mode can be useful if you intend to hold one key all
the time as a fundamental while playing figurations above it.
At the right of the Voice/Unisono Page, the Unisono Spreading Area allows
you to control how the different voices of a same note are differentiated from
each other. You have three controls here: the Pitch and Cutoff, the Wavetable
Position and the Panorama Position. Each control has a slider as in addition
to one or more numeric displays and buttons.

64 – MASSIVE
Generally, for each of these parameters, the additional voices will sound more
and more “distant” from the original voice. That is why this process is called
“spreading”: the additional voices are “spread” out around the original one
as you adjust the controls.
The parameters here are arranged in three rows. These rows share the same
structure. From left to right, we find the following controls:

• A Spread Switch allows you to activate the corresponding parameter

to spread the voices. If this switch is set to on (it will turn blue), then
the voices will be spread out according to the controls in the respective
section.
• A Spread Amount Control slider allows you to set the maximum amount
of spreading between the different voices. Numerical fields allow you to
set the spreading range. All active voices are spread out evenly within
this maximum range. Thus, the more active voices you are using, the
closer together each pair individual voices will be.
Here is some more information about the individual rows.
The Pitch and Cutoff Spread Amount Control’s range is set in semitones and
cents (hundredths of cents). The numerical values here can go from -12.00
semitones to +12.00 semitones. At the right of this slider, a Detune Mode
Switch allows you to choose from two detune modes:
• Centered: the pitches are symmetrically spread around the main pitch.
This is particularly useful with slight spreading values, up to about one
semitone, which are often used to thicken a sound.
• Chord: the pitches are spread alternatively below and above the main
pitch. Use this mode with high spreading values that establish chord-
like structures.

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Here are two examples to understand how this works:

With the settings as above, the four active voices will be tuned according to
the following list:
Voice 1: -75 cents
Voice 2: -25 cents
Voice 3: +25 cents
Voice 4: +75 cents
As you will notice, the original pitch is not present within this mode; rather,
the four different voices surround it symmetrically. As the voices will be heard
to merge into one, chorus-like sound with only one pitch, the original pitch
will be heard nonetheless, as the center of the voice tunings.

With these settings, the voices will be tuned like this:

Voice 1: 0 (original pitch)
Voice 2: +12 semitones
Voice 3: -12 semitones
Voice 4: +24 semitones
Here, the original pitch is present (first voice), and the other voices are grouped
around it, alternating between pitches below the main pitch (third voice) and
above (second and fourth voice).
Below the Pitch and Cutoff Spread Amount Control you will see the Wavetable
Position Spread Amount Control. The range of this control is set as a percentage.
This control will cause the Wavetable Position (adjusted by the Wt-position
knob) of the various voices to spread out around the original voice.
The Panorama Position Spread Amount Control range is not editable. Rather,
it allows you to adjust the stereo imaging of the voices. With the slider at far
right, you will hear the full stereo image. When it is in the middle, you will
hear a centered mono signal, and at far left, you will hear an inverted stereo
image, with left and right signals reversed.

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Routing
As you can see in the image below, the Routing Page shows you a graphic
representation of the signal flow in MASSIVE:

Here you can see the various modules and Sections in MASSIVE and how
the signal flows between them. You can also see a number of buttons that
can be activated or deactivated by clicking them. Activated buttons show up
light blue here, deactivated buttons in a darker color.
The signal flow in MASSIVE is explained in detail in section 4.1 on Signal
Flow and Voicing, please refer to this section for a full explanation of how this
works. However, you should understand the function of the various buttons
present here.
Looking to the left edge of the Routing Page, we see the three oscillators,
labeled Osc1, Osc2 and Osc3. Under these is the Noise generator. Now, just to
the right of each of these, you can see a small button that can be highlighted
by clicking it. (Notice that only one of these buttons can be active at a time.)
These are the Bypass Source Selectors for each sound source. By clicking
these in turn, you can select which audio signal will be passed directly to the
Bypass Section (see section 4.7.2) towards the end of the signal chain.
There are also three Bypass Target Selector buttons at the lower right of the
Routing Page. Choosing one of these allows you to select the point at which
the signal from the Bypass Section will be mixed back into the main signal:
after the Pan, or after FX1 or FX2 in the Master Effects Section.
Looking just a bit further to the right of the Bypass Source Selectors, we
see another column of six buttons marked alternately “ins1,” “ins2,” “ins1,”
“ins2” and so on. If we look around a bit more, we can see that there are a
number of other similarly-labelled buttons placed elsewhere on the Routing
Page. These are the Insert Effects Position Selectors. You can use these to
set the position of the Insert Effects (see section 4.6) in the signal chain.

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Setting the position of these effects can make a big difference in how they
modify the sound. Note that you can only have one “ins1” and one “ins2”
button selected at one time.
There are also a number of buttons here labelled “FB.” These are the Feedback
Source Selector buttons. Only one of these can be selected, and it determines
the point at which part of the signal is routed back to the Feedback Section,
where it can be reintroduced to the signal chain at the beginning. Note that
you can apply one of the insert effects directly to the feedback signal.

Global
The Global Page contains various parameters that are relevant for all other
parts of MASSIVE, for instance the global tuning. This page also provides
some copy and paste functionality as well as the ability to randomize the
current sound’s settings.

The Global tune parameter allows you to adjust MASSIVE’s tuning in semitones
and cents.
The Preset BPM parameter sets the tempo of the internal clock in beats
(quarter notes) per minute. This parameter is saved with the sound, used for
example when the Stepper modulator is used in sync mode. The Preset BPM
parameter is not relevant if External Sync is active.
Clicking on the Reset button resets the internal clock’s song position pointer
to zero, like going to a track’s start in a sequencer. This is used to ensure the
reproducibility of modulation source signal. This parameter is not relevant if
External Sync is active.
If the External Sync is on, the internal clock is deactivated and clock is taken
from MIDI signals arriving at the synthesizer. This is particularly useful when
MASSIVE is used as a plug-in, as the host will provide a global clock signal
for all plug-ins to synchronize them.

68 – MASSIVE
The Preset Quality buttons switch between two quality modes. High (using
oversampling) should be used whenever possible, but note that the CPU load
is increased with this setting.
Copy/Paste and Randomization can be applied module-wise in this section.
There are four module groups: oscillators, filters, insert effects and master
effects, arranged horizontally. For each group, you can select (vertically)
whether the copy/paste/random function is applied to the parameter values, the
modulation depths, or the type selection (e.g. wavetable selection). Thus you
can specify the target of the operation in this table-like structure. Pressing the
Random button randomizes the adjusted part of MASSIVE, e.g. the oscillators’
parameters. The amount of randomization is adjusted in percentages in the
central boxes. A value of 25, for instance, changes the target values by a
maximum of 25 percent around the actual value. These can be used to slightly
modify settings (low values) or create completely new sounds (high values). The
Copy function here writes the selected target into an internal buffer, and Paste
writes the internal buffer onto the selected target. These functions can be used
to copy parts of a sound (e.g. the filter settings) into another sound by copying
the filter data into the internal buffer, loading another sound, and pasting the
buffer again. This overwrites the current settings without asking.

4.8.2. Modulation Pages

Each of the eight Modulation Pages defines a modulation source that can be
used to modulate MASSIVE’s other parameters. (For more information and
step-by-step instructions on how exactly to assign modulation sources to
destinations in MASSIVE, see section 4.2.3.)
The modulation sources are grouped into two basic types, the Envelopes
(tabs 1-4, color-coded blue) and the Assignable Pages (tabs 5-8, color-coded
green). Each of the four Assignable Pages allows you to choose between three
specific modulation source types: LFO, Stepper and Performer. To choose
one of these types, use the dropdown menu in the upper-right corner of the
individual modulation page.

Structure
All of the Modulation Pages share the same basic structure:
• The tab header displays the modulation source number and type. Click on
it to select a specific modulation page and display its parameters. When
a modulation source is selected, its tab header is will be highlighted
as in the image below:

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 • The modulation handle (the little cross at the right of each tab header)
allows you to assign this modulation source to the desired destination
parameter(s), as described above.

It is not necessary to select a modulation source first before assigning

it. Even if a modulation source is not selected (and its parameters not
displayed), you can still make an assignment between its modulation
handle and a destination modulation slot, allowing you to quickly make
a number of different assignments without having to flip back and forth
between the individual modulation pages here.

• The top row of each modulation page includes general options for that
particular modulation source.

Envelopes
The first four Modulation Pages starting from the left allow you to define four
individual modulation envelopes. Their tab headers are blue.
These envelopes are designed according to the ADSR (Attack-Decay-Sustain-
Release) scheme, with certain special features related to the sustain stage
and for trigger options.
The envelope shape is represented on the Graphic Display:

The knobs below the Graphic Display are used to edit the envelope. Try moving
them and you will see exactly how each of them influences the envelope shape.
The Graphic Display always shows you the current shape of the envelope, as
determined by how you set the knobs and menus.
The top row for the envelope includes two buttons:
• The Linear Transition Switch switches the Decay shape from logarithmic
to linear. By default, the Attack shape of the envelope is linear, while the

70 – MASSIVE
 Decay and Release shapes are logarithmic. With this Switch activated,
the Decay shape becomes linear as well.
• The Trigger Mode Switch causes the envelope to retrigger from the
beginning every time it receives an incoming MIDI note. If this is
disabled, the envelope will not start at zero if the previous note’s release
period is not over yet; instead using the current level as its starting
point.
At the far left of the Envelope Page, you will find another set of global controls
that modify the envelope response to incoming MIDI notes.
At the top left, the Play Mode Selector allows you to choose from three Play
Modes: Gate, One Shoot and Hold (see below).

This Play mode determines how the envelope will be read:

• With Gate selected, when you press a key, the envelope is started and
read until its end. However, if you release the key before the envelope
comes to the end, it will immediately jump to the Release stage.
• With One Shoot selected, as soon as a key is pressed, the envelope is
read to the end, even if the key is released sooner. The full sustain stage
(with any possible loops, see below for more on this) is also read.
• With Hold selected, as soon as a key is pressed, the envelope is read
until the Sustain end point (including possible loops). It remains there
also if the triggering key is released. The envelope jumps to the release
stage only when the triggering key is pressed a second time, or if
another key is pressed, triggering another note. However, if another
key is pressed while the initial key is still held, the new note will be
stacked onto the initial one, building a chord. All chord notes jump
to the release stage simultaneously when all keys have been released
and a new key is pressed. This mode can be particularly useful in live
situations when MASSIVE is being used to generate grooves or rhythmic
soundscapes.
Just below the Play Mode Selector, two faders allow you to adjust the influence
of incoming MIDI notes on the overall envelope amplitude:
• The Velocity Sensitivity Fader controls the influence of the incoming
MIDI note’s velocity on the overall envelope amplitude. If the Fader
is at full left, the envelope amplitude is not influenced at all by the
incoming note’s velocity. If the Fader is at full right, the overall envelope
amplitude is directly proportional to the incoming note’s velocity.

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 • The Keytracking Fader controls the influence of the incoming note’s pitch
on the overall envelope amplitude as follows: the higher the pitch, the
smaller the envelope amplitude. If the Fader is at full left, the envelope
amplitude is not influenced at all by the MIDI pitch. If you move the
Fader to the right, the overall envelope amplitude is more and more
influenced by the incoming note’s pitch, with higher sounds becoming
lower in volume.
At the bottom of this area, the Delay Time Control allows you to insert a
delay between the time when you hit the key and the time when the envelope
starts.
Let’s look now at the parameters for each envelope stage.
The Attack stage starts from zero (no sound) and goes up until it reaches
the maximum value you have set. Two controls allow you to define how the
envelope reaches the maximum attack value:

• The Attack Time Control adjusts the time needed by the envelope to go
from zero to the first maximum point. If you turn the knob clockwise,
the attack becomes longer, and your sound will start more smoothly.
• Next to this, the Attack Level Control sets the amplitude of the maximum
point. It can be effective in many cases to give this parameter a higher
value than the following Decay Level; this will give some initial punch
to your sound when you hit a key.
The Decay stage goes from Attack’s maximum value and leads to the Sustain
stage. Again, two controls provide control over the time and level domains:

• The Decay Time Control adjusts the time needed by the envelope to go
from the attack’s maximum value to the decay end point.
• The following Decay Level Control sets the amplitude of this final point,
thus also adjusting the value for the sustain starting point.
The Sustain stage provides two special features. First, a loop function allows
you to play this part of the envelope back and forth a set number of times.
You can think of this as a kind of mini-LFO inside the envelope, looping only
a certain fixed number of times between the Decay and Release stages before

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moving on. Second, a morphing function provides you with two selectable
sustain shapes, allowing you to morph the actual sustain shape between
these two.
The controls for the Sustain stage are as follows, from left to right:

• The Sustain Loop Length Control adjusts the time between the sustain
start and end points. If you turn it clockwise, you increase the sustain
duration, and therefore also lower the speed of the envelope in the
sustain stage.
• The Sustain Level Control sets the amplitude of the sustain end
point.
• The Sustain Morph Control adjusts the actual sustain shape between
the two reference sustain shapes defined by the Sustain Morph Popup
Menus (see below). If the knob is turned full left, the sustain shape will
be the shape selected in the first Morph Menu. With the knob at full
right, the shape will fit the one selected in the second Morph Menu.
In between, the actual sustain shape will be an interpolation between
the two selected shapes. The Graphic Display indicates the actual
interpolated curve as you change the morph settings.
• The Sustain Morph 1 Popup Menu allows you to select the first boundary
for the morphing function.
• The Sustain Morph 2 Popup Menu allows you to select the other
boundary for the morphing function. If you choose the same shape as
in the other menu, the morphing function will be deactivated (as it will
have no effect to morph between two shapes that are exactly the same
anyway).
• The Sustain Loop Count, at the lower right of the Sustain stage, defines
how many times the Sustain stage will loop. Actually, the envelope
executes a back and forth movement, and via the Sustain Loop Count
you define the number of times it will play forward and backward.
If you select 0, the Sustain stage is ignored; depending on the Play
Mode Selector setting (see above), the envelope will then go directly
to the Release stage, or stay at the sustain start point level as long as
you hold the key, or stay at this level as long as you hold the key or
no other note comes. If you select 1, the envelope goes once through
the sustain stage, from left to right, then to the Release stage. If you

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 select 2, the envelope will go from the start point to the end point,
and back to the start point, and then it will jump to the Release stage.
And so on. You can turn this up to a maximum of 32 half-cycles (i.e.
16 times forwards and 16 backwards). However, the menu also allows
you to select an infinite loop (choose inf in the menu, all the way to the
top of the popup menu.), which makes the sustain stage loop forever.
Note: A white dot in the Graphic Display indicates where the cycle process
will stop. An odd number setting for the Sustain Loop Count will cause the
envelope to stop on the right side of the sustain stage, at the sustain level. An
even number lets the sustain cycle stop on the left side of the sustain stage,
therefore at the decay level.
The Release stage defines how the envelope ends up. You only have one
control for this stage, called Release Time Control, adjusting the time for the
envelope to fade to zero.

This envelope structure is very versatile, yet you can also use it for classic
ADSR envelopes: just set the Sustain Loop Count to off, then turn the Attack
Level to its maximum, and adjust the Attack and Decay Time Controls to
medium values. Now you can use the Decay Level Control as a Sustain Level
control.

Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer

The last four Modulation Pages allows you to define four other modulation
sources; in each of these, you can choose from three different modes: LFO,
Stepper and Performer. Their tab headers are green.

74 – MASSIVE
Click on one of the four green tab headers to select the corresponding
modulation source and display its Modulation Page with all its parameters
visible.

Most of the controls in the top row of these three modulation modes are mostly
the same, so let’s have a look at them from left to right:
• The Mono Button, when activated, will force the modulator to output a
monophonic modulation signal, no matter how many voices are played.
You can use this function to “synchronize” the modulations of different
voices.
• The Mode Popup Menu, at the far right, allows you to select the kind
of modulation source you want to use in this Modulation Page (LFO,
Stepper or Performer).
These three modulation modes also share the same left block of controls:

From top to bottom, we find:

• The Rate Control and its associated Sync Switch. The Rate Control
adjusts the speed of the modulation source. When the Sync Switch is
engaged, the modulation source is synchronized with the master clock
or external sync (see the Global Page). The Rate Control then becomes
a Ratio Control with two number fields, allowing you to specify the
duration of one step of the modulation source. For LFOs this is one

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 complete cycle; for all other sources this is actually one step within
the sequence. The lower value determines the temporal unit; e.g. a
16 represents a sixteenth note, and 4 represents a quarter note (one
beat). The upper value determines the actual length of the cycle as
multiples of the lower unit, e.g. setting a pair of 3 (upper value) and 16
(lower value) will cause the Stepper to proceed to the next step after
three sixteenth notes have passed according to the global clock (see
the Global Page in section 4.8.1).

• The Restart Switch causes the envelope to re-trigger every time it

receives a note (i.e., the envelope starts from the same point each
time). If the Restart Switch is deactivated, the modulation source runs
in the background: when you play a note, it is driven by the modulator,
starting at the current modulator position.
• The Amplification Control sets the modulation signal amplitude. Its
effect is similar to the modulation amount setting (set by clicking on
the assigned modulation slot under the target knob and dragging the
mouse up or down, see 4.2.3 on setting modulation assignments for
more on this). The difference is that if you modulate different targets
with this modulation source, this Amplification Control has an effect
on all of the targets. Note that your modulation assignments may have
no audible effect if this Amplification Control is set to full left, as this
is equivalent to no effect!
All the other controls in these pages are specific to the particular modulation
source mode you have chosen, even if there are some similarities between
them.

LFO
LFO stands for Low Frequency Oscillator. This modulator generates a periodic
signal at a low frequency. The word “low” here means that its frequency is
lower than those which a human ear interprets as “sound”: The LFO does
not directly add anything to the audio content, but instead it can be used to
continuously modify the sound’s parameters.
For the controls included in the top row and in the left block, please refer to
the previous section (“Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer”).
We will describe here the controls that are specific to the LFO modulation
source.

76 – MASSIVE
Note that each LFO in MASSIVE is actually a double LFO: the modulation
source features a morphing function that allows you to interpolate between
two curves (similarly to the sustain stage of the envelope modulation source
described above). You can adjust the LFO curve on the fly by moving the Xfade
Curve slider. This is all done in the left part of the interface.
The two curves are represented in the upper and lower part. For each of the
two curves, the interface provides you with:
• a Curve Graphic Display representing the curve’s shape
• a Curve Morph Quick Selector, allowing you to select a shape among
four basic LFO waveforms (sine, sawtooth, square and triangle),
• a Curve Morph Popup Menu, giving you access to more complex
waveforms to choose from.
At far left, the Curve Morph Control fader allows you to adjust the interpolation
between both curves, which will be the effective played LFO curve. With the
fader at full top, you select only the upper curve. With the fader at full bottom,
you select the lower curve. In between, you can adjust the interpolation of
both.
Above the Curve Morph Fader and the Curve Graphic Displays, the Phase Fader
sets the starting phase of the curves. In other words, you can choose if you
want to start the square LFO at the upper stage or the lower stage.
The phase position is represented on the Phase Fader by a small yellow triangle
and on the Curve Graphic Displays by a yellow vertical line that indicates where
exactly the LFO signal will start.
The right part of the interface contains a useful feature already seen in the OSC
Page: an internal envelope that can modulate the LFO parameters themselves.
This envelope is depicted in the upper right part of the Modulation Page, on
the Internal Envelope Graphic Display. Above, you can see a header similar
to the Modulation Pages tab headers, and a small modulation handle next
to it from which you can make modulation assignments to the three internal
targets: the Rate Control (only possible if the Sync Switch is deactivated), the
Amplification Control and the Curve Morph Control.

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In the lower part, you will find two parameters for this envelope: the Attack
Time Fader adjusts the attack of the envelope, and the c adjusts its decay. All
adjustments are represented on the Internal Envelope Graphic Display.

Stepper
The Stepper is basically a step sequencer. It allows you to define a certain
number of steps, each of them having a specific amplitude value. The steps
are read in a looped sequence, recreating a periodic signal to be used as a
modulation.
For the controls included in the top row and in the left block, please refer to
the section “Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer.”
We will describe here the controls specific to the Stepper modulation
source.

The main part of the Stepper Modulation Page is occupied by the Stepper
Graphic Display, showing the different steps. For each step, the corresponding
amplitude is represented by a bar. To adjust each amplitude, click on the
bar and drag the mouse up or down. Hold the keyboard’s Shift key for fine
adjustments.

78 – MASSIVE
On the top of the Display, a Loop Area Bar shows the step numbers. On this
bar, a yellow triangle indicates the current step being played. The triangle
moves through all steps included in the loop.
The steps included in the loop have their numbers highlighted in the Loop
Area Bar.
To edit the loop range, click on the first or last step number in the loop, hold
the mouse button and drag it to the left or to the right: the highlighted numbers
follow the mouse movements, defining a new loop range. The loop speed is
controlled by the Rate/Ratio Control, in the left block of controls described
earlier (in the section “Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer.”)
At the left of the Stepper Graphic Display, there are two faders:
• The Glide Modulation Control adjusts the glide between the former step
and the current step. The glide can be used to create soft transitions
between steps. When this is turned all the way down, there is no
glide between the steps; when turned up to the top, the glide is at its
maximum. Note that this functionality has to be activated for each step
individually with the Step Activation Rows explained below.
• The Amplitude Modulation Control adjusts the overall amplitude of the
modulation defined by the step sequences. When all the way down,
there is no modulation (whatever the bars are); when all the way up,
the modulation is at its maximum. Note that this functionality has to
be activated for each step individually with the Step Activation Rows
explained below.
These two faders can be modulated, as indicated by the small black modulation
slot under each of them. The modulation amount is then shown on their right
side by a vertical bar, with the color of the modulation source, like all other
modulatable parameters.
Each of these faders is related to one of the two Step Activation Rows below
the Display. Each Step Activation Row contains a sequence of boxes, one under
each step. Each box defines if the corresponding step will be affected by the
relevant fader or not. If a box is activated (blue), the corresponding step will
follow the fader control. If it’s deactivated (black), the step is not affected by
the fader setting. To activate a box, click on it. You also can hold the mouse
button and drag the mouse to activate or deactivate several boxes.

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For example, in the image above, we can see that:
• The loop includes the steps 5 to 16.
• The Glide Modulation Control is at a middle setting, and it is modulated
by Macro Control 5.
• Only step 10 is affected by this glide modulation (as shown by the lower
Step Activation Row).
• The Amplitude Modulation Control is at a low setting, and it is modulated
by the Macro Control 3.
• All the steps in the loop are affected by this amplitude modulation (as
shown by the upper Step Activation Row).

Performer
The Performer is quite similar to the Stepper in its implementation, but it
allows you to create much more complex sequences. The Performer lets you
generate step-sequenced rhythms with the aid of waveforms instead of simple
vertical bars.
Furthermore, it also features a morph function that allows you to interpolate
between two sequences, just as in the envelope and in the LFO modulation
sources (see above).
For the controls included in the top row and in the left block, please refer to
the section “Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer.”
We will describe here the controls specific to the Performer modulation
source.

80 – MASSIVE
The steps are depicted in the Performer Graphic Display. Each step displays
its loaded waveform.
You can choose a specific waveform for each step. To choose a waveform, click
on the Load Curve Button at the top left of the Modulation Page. This will open
a matrix with a number of different waveforms. Here you can select and assign
various waveforms to the steps: select one waveform (by clicking), then click
on the target step frame. You can do multiple assignments (one waveform to
several steps) by holding the Shift key and clicking on the desired steps.

Like in the Stepper, you can adjust each step’s amplitude by clicking and
holding its waveform and dragging the mouse up or down. Hold the keyboard’s
Shift key for fine adjustments.
When you are done with the waveform assignments, click again on the Load
Curve Button to close the matrix.
As in the Stepper, a Loop Area Bar on the top of the Performer Graphic Display
shows the step numbers. It also displays a yellow triangle that indicates the
current step being played. The triangle moves through all steps included in
the loop.
The steps included in the loop have their numbers highlighted in the Loop
Area Bar.
To edit the loop range, click on the first or last step number in the loop, hold
the mouse button and drag it to the left or to the right: the highlighted numbers
follow the mouse movements, defining a new loop range. The loop speed is

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controlled by the Rate/Ratio Control, in the left block of controls described
earlier (“Common Controls for LFO, Stepper and Performer.”)
At the left of the Performer Graphic Display, we find two faders:
• The Amplitude Modulation Control adjusts the overall amplitude of the
modulation defined by the step sequences. At full down, there is no
modulation (whatever the waveforms are); at full up, the modulation is
at its maximum. Note that this functionality has to be activated for each
step individually with the Step Activation Rows explained below.
• The Sequence Morph Control adjusts the interpolation between both
sequences, i.e. the sequence effectively played by the Performer. At
full down, only the lower sequence is played; at full up, only the upper
sequence is played. In between, you can adjust the interpolation. Note
that this functionality has to be activated for each step individually with
the Step Activation Rows explained below.
The two faders can be modulated, as indicated by the small black box under
each of them. The modulation amount is then shown on their right side by a
vertical bar, with the color of the modulation source, like all other modulatable
parameters.
Each of these faders is related to one of the two Step Activation Rows below
the Display. Each Step Activation Row contains a sequence of boxes, one
under each step. Each box defines if the corresponding step will be affected
by the relevant fader or not. If a box is activated (blue), the corresponding
step will follow the fader control. If it’s deactivated (black), the step is not
affected by the fader setting. You can also hold the mouse button and drag
the mouse to activate/deactivate several boxes.

For example, on the picture above, we see that:

• The loop includes the first 9 steps.
• The Amplitude Modulation Control is at a quite low setting, and it is
modulated by Macro Control 1.

82 – MASSIVE
 • Only the steps 1, 3, 5-9 are affected by this amplitude modulation (as
shown by the lower Step Activation Row).
• The Sequence Morph Control is at a quite high setting, and it is
modulated (in the opposite direction) by the Macro Control 2.
• Only the steps 1, 2, 7-9 are affected by this sequence morphing (as
shown by the upper Step Activation Row).

4.9. Macro Control Section

MASSIVE’s Macro Control Section handles incoming MIDI data such as velocity,
aftertouch and other MIDI controller information. It is also the most prominent
place to work with incoming automation data from a host sequencer program
when MASSIVE is used as a plug-in. For conceptual information on how to
work with the Macro Controls, see section 4.2.5.

There are two types of controls available here.

At the left, there are four small yellow controllers available which can be
assigned to modulation destinations in MASSIVE. Each of these routes
modulation data triggered by an external MIDI keyboard or MIDI sequence to
the modulation target.
• KTr (Keytracking): Generates a modulation signal depending on the
pitch of the played MIDI note.
• TrR (Trigger Random): Each played MIDI note trigger generates a new
random value at the output of the TrR modulation source.
• AT (Aftertouch): The modulation source provides the aftertouch value
of your MIDI messages. Note that relatively few MIDI keyboards send
aftertouch information.
• Vel (Velocity): This modulation source relays velocity data from your
MIDI keyboard or other MIDI controller.
At the right, the eight Macro Control Knobs can be used to unify your interaction
with the sound of MASSIVE. They can be controlled easily by external MIDI
knobs or faders: Right-click one of the Macro Controls and select MIDI Learn
from the context menu. Then move your external controller’s knob or fader to
make the assignment. While this can be done with all of MASSIVE’s parameters,
the Macro Controls will probably be your favorite target.
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You will find that most of the preset sounds included in MASSIVE’s library
already have assignments made to the eight Macro Control Knobs, allowing
you to easily assign external MIDI controls to them and start tweaking and
changing the sound in creatively useful ways. The exact assignments for each
preset will vary, but in general they conform to the following pattern. Note
that you can assign these knobs to control whatever parameters you want;
the descriptions below reflect only the typical settings of the presets in the
MASSIVE sound library.
• Macro Knobs 1 and 2: Oscillator. Settings related to the oscillator section
are generally assigned to these first two knobs. Examples: WT-position,
Intensity, Pitch (for chords etc.)
• Macro Knobs 3 and 4: Spectrum. This column usually controls settings
related to the frequency domain, i.e. anything that changes the sound’s
spectrum. Examples: Filter Cutoff, Phase distortion level
• Macro Knobs 5 and 6: FX. Effect-related settings are typically assigned
to knobs 5 and 6. The dry/wet parameters of active effects are often
assigned to Control knob 5. The other Control knob may be assigned
to other effect parameters such as effect time, feedback, and so on.
• Macro Knobs 7 and 8: Motion/Time. Knobs 7 and 8 are related to the
time domain, i.e. anything that changes the sound in time. Parameters
such as modulation speed and intensity or the LFO or Stepper Rate may
be assigned here. Examples: Rate/Amp of LFO/Env/Stepper/Performer,
Morph speed, Envelope amount.
Note that the Macro Controls will appear (along with all of MASSIVE’s other
controls) as automatable parameters in a host sequencer. Thus, you can
modulate them with recorded MIDI data in your sequence. You can directly
automate any of MASSIVE’s various controls directly from your sequence as
well, but making the assignment via the Macro Controls opens up a number
of new creative possibilities as described in section 4.2.5.
Please refer to your host’s documentation on information about its automation
capacities. There it will be explained how to access MASSIVE’s parameters
from inside your host application.

4.10. The Browser and Attributes Views

4.10.1. The Attributes Concept and the KoreSound
MASSIVE provides a new and more intuitive way to save, browse and load
its preset sounds. We have left behind the old paradigm of individual sounds

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contained within separate sound banks, with all its organizational problems.
Instead, the settings for each sound are saved into single files that can then
easily be ported between platforms or projects. These sound files can also be
loaded directly by NATIVE INSTRUMENTS’ host application KORE. Therefore,
each saved sound within MASSIVE is called a KoreSound.
To handle all these KoreSound files you need a powerful way to browse them.
Therefore, each KoreSound file also contains information about the sound in
musical terms, called the sound’s attributes. The Attributes View of MASSIVE
provides a list of about 170 different attributes.
By combining these descriptive terms, each of the synthesizer’s sounds can
be described according to its origin or source, its timbre, articulation and
genre. You can also enter additional Meta Information such as the name of
the sound’s author and so on.
All KoreSound files placed in MASSIVE’s user and factory library folders
are automatically integrated into a database of sounds. The Browser View
of MASSIVE is your interface to this database. Within the Browser you can
select a combination of attributes to find a sound that fits your needs. For
example, try selecting attributes Bass, Digital, Dark and Fat, Monophonic and
Techno/Electro to find exactly that – a digitally cold yet propulsive and fat
bassline sound. Different bank files at various locations on your disk won’t be
an issue anymore. You’ll be able to find the sounds you need for your music
quickly and easily.

Please note that there is a differentiation between SingleSounds and

MultiSounds within KORE. All KoreSounds you save with MASSIVE
will be loaded as SingleSounds in KORE, and MASSIVE will also only
be able to load SingleSounds. Please refer to the KORE manual for
detailed information. This difference is of no importance within MASSIVE
itself.

The following sections will explain how to use MASSIVE’s attributes to browse
your sounds and load them, and how you can save your own sounds using
the attributes. You can find a complete description of all available attributes
within Appendix B, and a detailed tutorial on how to search with the browser
is available in Appendix A of this manual.

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4.10.2. Searching and Loading Sounds with the Browser
The Browser View is the place where you search and load your MASSIVE
sounds, and where you organize them into programs.

The Browser can be used in two alternative view modes that are toggled
by clicking the Sounds button in the View’s upper-left corner. When this is
deactivated, you will see the File Tree View; when activated, you can browse
your KoreSounds in the Database View. Both views share the same structure:
at the left you specify which sounds you want to see (i.e. a folder in File
Tree View or a set of attributes in Database View), and on the right you load
one of the KoreSounds from the Search Results by double-clicking it. When
activating the Programs button in either view a program list is added. All views
feature the Browser Control Bar at the top, containing the Sounds button, the
Programs button and further controls.

Database View
The Database View is visible when the Sounds button is activated by clicking
with the mouse. It consists of the table of attributes itself as well as the
Sound Type switch, the Clear button and the Search Term text field, these
three placed within the Control Bar at the top.

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The attributes are grouped into columns, the categories. For instruments, the
categories used are Instrument, Source, Timbre, Articulation and Genre.
• Instrument specifies the general type of instrument, for example Synth,
Bass, or Soundscape.
• Source loosely describes the sound’s origin: acoustic, derived from a
sample loop, synthetic, etc.
• Timbre describes the sound’s general tonality: cold, warm, metallic,
dissonant, and so on.
• Articulation describes how the sound develops through time (rhythmic,
short, evolving, and the like).
• Genre provides a choice of musical styles with which the sound might
be compatible.
Each of these categories contains a list of attributes describing possible
characteristics a given KoreSound might have. A detailed explanation of all
available attributes can be found in Appendix B. There are also several examples
on how to find a specific sound in Appendix A.
To search for a sound within the database, simply select or deselect single
attributes by clicking them with the mouse. Any number of attributes can be
combined to narrow your search, except that you can only use one attribute
of the Instrument category. The Clear button deselects all currently activated

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attributes. Each additional attribute that you select reduces the total number
of matching KoreSounds in the list at right. The remaining KoreSounds are
displayed in the Search Results.
Instead of browsing the database by using the attributes you can also search
for sounds by entering a search term into the Search Term text field. When you
enter a term here and press Enter, the MASSIVE Browser will search through
all KoreSound file names as well as all the text fields of Meta Information.
By using this feature you can, for example, search for all sounds sharing the
same word in their names, all sounds created by a particular author, or you
can find those sounds containing specific terms in their Comment fields. Note
that this flexible textual search cannot be combined with the attribute search,
however; entering a search term here automatically clears the current attribute
selection. It is also independent from any Sound Type switch setting.
Please note, finally, that the database represents the contents of the library
folders (and their sub-folders) on your hard-drive. Those folders are not
checked for new KoreSound files each time MASSIVE is started, as this
would significantly slow down the start-up time. Thus, if you manually place
KoreSound files within your library folders by using your operating system,
MASSIVE will not integrate these files into the database search until the
library folders are re-scanned. Again, you can trigger the database rebuild
manually within the Options Dialog, described in section 4.3.1. The database
is then scanned in a background process while you can continue working
with MASSIVE.

File Tree View

The File Tree View is visible when the Sounds button is deactivated by clicking
with the mouse. In this view, some of the elements within the Control Bar will
fade, and in place of the columns of attributes a common file tree is displayed,
showing all the folders and drives on your computer. You can adjust the layout
in File Tree View by dragging the small handle on the frame between the
views to either side.

88 – MASSIVE
Working in File Tree View’s is straightforward, as it is similar to the way you
work with files in the operating system itself. You can select a folder by clicking
its name; any KoreSound files contained within it are immediately displayed
within the Search Results. If a folder contains sub-folders, you can make them
visible by clicking on the folder icon in front of the folder’s name. The list of
sub-folders is closed again by clicking the folder icon once more.
When all folders are closed there are three main entries here:
• Topmost is the Explorer entry. It contains your operating system’s folder
structure as sub-levels. This is particularly useful if you want to open
a KoreSound file that is not within your library folders.
• In the middle is the My Favorites entry. It does not contain KoreSounds
itself; instead it contains links to KoreSound files elsewhere on your
computer.
• Finally, there is the My Sounds entry, which links to the user content
folder on your hard drive. (Read more about this below.) It reflects that
directory’s sub-folder structure; its handling is similar to that of the
Explorer entry. The My Sounds entry contains all the original sounds
that you have saved from previous sessions with MASSIVE.
Note that you cannot delete, rename, copy or move KoreSounds within the File
Tree View as this might create inconsistencies with the database. If you need
to delete or rename a KoreSound, you can do this in your operating system as
you would with any other files. You’ll find your sounds where they were saved by
MASSIVE (see section 4.10.3 below). By default, MASSIVE uses the following
file locations to save your sounds depending on your operating system:
• Windows: “My Documents/Native Instruments/Shared Content/Sounds/
Massive”
• Mac: “[User]/Documents/Native Instruments/Shared Content/
Sounds/Massive”

MASSIVE – 89
These are the default locations for the user content folder. You can add further
locations within the Browser Tab of the Options Dialog. There you can also
trigger a rebuild of the database. This is necessary after deleting or renaming
a KoreSound to inform the database of the changes.
The My Favorites entry is a powerful way to quickly access the KoreSounds
you use most often. You can add any KoreSound from the Search Results
by right-clicking it and selecting Add to My Favorites from the context menu.
Alternatively, you can drag it from the Search Results into the My Favorites
folder or one of its sub-folders. Note that you can also create sub-folders within
the My Favorites folder to sort your favorite sounds hierarchically: right-click
on the My Favorites entry and choose New Favorite Folder from the context
menu. A dialog will come up asking you for the new folder’s name. Empty
Favorites folders can also be removed by using this context menu.
You can also easily step through the KoreSounds in any folder by using the
Navigation Bar. See section 4.3.2 for details.

Search Results
No matter which Browser View you work in, the KoreSounds that match the
search criteria - folder selection or attribute combination - you have chosen
are displayed as a table within the search results.

Each row of the table holds one KoreSound. Information about the KoreSound
is displayed in several columns. You can change the table’s layout by clicking
on the headers at the top:
• Clicking onto a column’s header sorts the Search Results alphabetically,
according to that column’s entries. Clicking it again reverses the order
of the sort. This can come in handy if you want to search all bass
KoreSounds with a high rating, for example. Simply select the Bass
attribute within the Database View’s Instrument column, and then click
the Rating column header within the Search Results: the KoreSounds
with the highest ratings will now appear at the top of the list.
• Right-clicking provides a context menu of possible columns to be displayed.
Clicking a column label here that is already displayed (e.g. Name) removes

90 – MASSIVE
 it from the display. Vice versa, clicking the label of a column that is
currently not displayed inserts the column into the table.
You can now easily load a MASSIVE KoreSound by double-clicking it within
the Search Results.
Note that you can also load your Search Results one after another by using
the Navigation Bar. See section 4.3.2 for details.

Programs
Within the Browser Control Bar you will find the Programs button. Clicking it
removes the Database View (the File Tree View remains in this case, as it is
smaller) and brings up a second list beside the current Search Results. You can
drag any KoreSound to this list from the Search Results. You can also change
the list’s order by dragging the KoreSounds within the list up and down. You
can also load a KoreSound directly from this list by double-clicking it.

After you press the On Button (beside the Programs button if this one is
activated) this list of KoreSounds becomes your default list of presets, and
these presets become selectable by MIDI Program Change messages and
host automation from a sequencer.
In order to switch between the list’s KoreSounds quickly, all of its sounds are
loaded into your computer’s memory upon startup. Because of this, however,
a long Program List may noticeably delay the startup procedure of MASSIVE.
You may want to deactivate this if you don’t intend to use the Program List,
in order to speed up MASSIVE’s loading time.
Obviously, only one program list can be active at a time. You can, however,

MASSIVE – 91
export the list to a file and create another one. All exported lists can be
imported again for future use. Note that those program lists link to the actual
KoreSounds, similar to the Favorites. If, by any circumstance, one of the
KoreSounds on the list has been lost or renamed, the program list will not
be able to recall it.
Note that you can also load your program list’s entries one after another by
using the Navigation Bar. See section 4.3.2 for details.

4.10.3. Defining Attributes and Saving KoreSounds

Assuming now that you are familiar with searching for a sound in the Browser’s
Database View (as described in the previous section), the following explanations
should be easy to follow.

You access the Attributes View by clicking the Attributes button in the Navigation
Bar. Its layout is similar to the Browser’s Database View, but while you load
KoreSounds from the Browser View, within the Attributes View you save them.
Therefore, the Search Results are not needed and are replaced by the Meta
Information.
The Meta Information provides additional text fields to enter information about
the sound to be saved:
• Author: the Author of a KoreSound. Fill in your name for your own
KoreSounds. This field is automatically filled with a default author
name, if one has been entered in the Options Dialog.
• Company: the commercial vendor of the KoreSound, if there is one.
• Bankname: the bank the sound is derived from.
• Color: associates a color with the KoreSound. This information is used
if the sound is loaded into KORE.
• Rating: allows you to assign a rating to the sound for future
reference.

92 – MASSIVE
 • Comment: this field can hold any information you want. Often it is
used to describe a KoreSound in terms of its possible usage, and also
to note any special interactive features of the KoreSound, e.g. “MIDI
modulation wheel controls master cutoff.”
• Number of Inputs: Specifies the number of inputs.
• Number of Outputs: Specifies the number of outputs.
• CPU Usage: Displays the percentage of CPU power the sound uses on
your system. The amount varies depending on the number and type of
modules and voices used. Note that this value will also vary depending
on how powerful your computer system is!
• Load Time: specifies the time it will takes to load the sound on your
system.
Please note the format of the Meta Information has been unified among a
number of different software instruments by NATIVE INSTRUMENTS such as
MASSIVE, ABSYNTH 4, and FM8 as well as our software live host KORE in
order to provide a common environment for your work. Some of the displayed
values may, however, not be active within all of these instruments. For instance,
Color or the Number of Outpus/Inputs is of no importance within MASSIVE.
You can search through all of the entries of the Meta Information with the
Search Term field of the Browser. For instance, you can enter the name of
the project you created your sound for in the first place into the Comment
field. By using the database you can access it easily in all future projects,
and if you need all sounds used in a particular project, you can find them by
entering the project’s name into the Search Term field.
All sounds you save are automatically integrated into the database. While this
is very comfortable for browsing – you don’t have to worry about where the
KoreSound files are actually stored – you should take a moment while saving
a new KoreSound to set its attributes. If you don’t do this, your database will
soon become less useful, as you won’t be able to find your own sounds easily.
Have a look at Appendix A and Appendix B for an explanation of all attributes
and some basic examples.
After you enter the Meta Information and set the attributes according to your
sound, you can save it by clicking the Save button within the Navigation Bar.
This button will bring up a Save As dialog asking you for the new KoreSound
file’s name and the location to save it. If you saved the sound previously, this
may overwrite the old file unless you rename it at this point; if so, MASSIVE
will ask you whether or not you really want to overwrite it. By default, the
dialog box will suggest to save the sound into the user content folder or one of
its sub-folders. The user content folder is created during installation and can

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be found in “My Documents/MASSIVE/My Sounds” in Windows XP (“[User]/
Documents/MASSIVE/My Sounds” in OSX). Note that you can access this
folder within the Browser’s File Tree View by selecting the My Sounds entry.
As explained above, you can use your operating system to delete or rename
files within these folders; please refer to section 4.10.2 for details.

Appendix A – How to Work with Attributes

This chapter will provide several examples on how to search for sounds and
effects with the sound Browser. You’ll learn the meaning and the definitions
of the supplied Attributes, as well as the logic behind their arrangement. We
will discuss how to search for specific sounds or effects effectively, and how
to supply Attributes for your own sounds and effects. A detailed explanation
of all the Attributes can be found in Appendix B.
First, switch to the Browser View and activate the Database View by activating
the Sounds button.
The Browser is arranged in five columns. Your search should begin with the
leftmost column and then filter the results as you move toward the rightmost
column. Some columns have internal groupings, so work with a left to right/top
to bottom protocol when searching for sounds.

The Instrument column

The Instrument column acts as the starting point for your search and describes
a sound’s basic instrumental quality:

94 – MASSIVE
Probably the first thing you did was to click on Synth to find a sound, as
MASSIVE is a synthesizer. You’ll wonder why we’ve included so many acoustic
instruments as Attributes.
The practice of imitating acoustic instruments has a long history. Synthesizing
brass, woodwinds or strings in analog synths has become so familiar to sound
designers that sounds like Mellow Strings or Fat Brass have become familiar
preset names for synthesized sounds.
Of course there are many sounds that have no connection to any acoustic
instrument, so you’ll probably find these sounds categorized as Synth,
Soundscapes, Sound Effects or Other. Also, don’t worry if you’re looking for
Pads or Leads, and can’t find these Attributes under Instruments. You can
specify this in the Articulation column, letting you distinguish between, for
example, String and Synth Pads.

Note that a sound can have only one instrument as an Attribute.

The Source Column

The Source column has the following functions:
• It defines the instrument you’ve chosen in the first column more
specifically
• It gives you information about the synthesis technique used in the
sound
• It provides information about the sound’s origin

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As you can see, this column is subdivided into seven smaller groups, each of
them serving a specific purpose. We’ll start from the top and make our way
to the bottom of the list, so let’s begin with the first group:
• Acoustic – Electric – Analog – Digital: These four Attributes define
the instrumental source. Let’s assume you’ve clicked on Bass in the
Instrument column; you can then distinguish among Acoustic basses
(e.g., an upright bass), Electric bass (e.g., a picked rock bass), Analog
Bass (e.g., a typical subtractive synth bass sound) and Digital bass (e.g.,
an FM bass sound). Of course, depending on your choice in the first
column, not every attribute will fit. If you chose Flute, you will probably
only be using Acoustic, Analog or Digital. Note that every sound should
belong to exactly one of the four types; i.e., a sound should not be
Analog and Digital.
• Synthetic – Sample-based: This pair of Attributes describes the sound’s
technical aspects, as it can be important to know if a sound was
generated by some form of synthetic synthesis technique or through
sampling.
• FM – Additive – Granular – Physical Model: These four Attributes specify
the audible perception and/or synthesis technique of the sound. Note
that an Attribute like FM does not necessarily mean that the sound uses
the actual technique of frequency modulation, but it clearly sounds like
FM.

96 – MASSIVE
The next six Attributes are grouped in pairs and specify the sound’s source:
• Solo/Single – Ensemble/Kit
• Small – Big
• Dry – Processed
These are clearly opposites (e.g., a sound cannot be Dry and Processed at the
same time). Please refer to Appendix B for a complete set of definitions.

The Timbre Column

The Timbre column specifies a KoreSound’s timbre. It is made up mostly of
Attribute pairs:

As with the pairs in the Source column, these Attributes are opposites. It is
important to realize that this column’s Attributes have to be seen in relation
to the selected Attributes in the Instrument and Source columns (that’s why
it’s a good idea to always go from left to right).
For example, a bass instrument is obviously low in nature; therefore you don’t
have to additionally select Low. However, you could still do it for bass sounds
that clearly exhibit low frequencies like a sub bass. Note that Attributes
like Warm or Exotic are highly subjective. It is important to consider the
expressiveness of such Attributes in relation to the instrument.
Please refer to the Appendix B for a complete set of definitions.

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The Articulation Column
The Articulation column serves two purposes: It describes how the sound
progresses over time; and it gives you information regarding how to use the
sound

With the Articulation column you can define exactly what the Sound is about,
and its intended use.
Especially in a live situation, the knowledge of how a sound is meant to be
played is quite important: If for example a sound is categorized as Chord, you
know immediately that hitting one key results in a chord, meaning that if you
play a chord on the keyboard the result will be rather messy.

98 – MASSIVE
The Genre Column
The Genre column describes the musical style with which a sound can be
associated:

This set of Attributes is the last step in defining your KoreSound, as these
are the most subjective definitions and/or interpretations.
Obviously, the definition of “What is techno?” and “What sound can be used
for techno?” is always subjective because really, every sound can be used
for every genre, like a harpsichord in hip-hop or a sub bass in jazz. But here,
we also try to pinpoint the sound’s origin whenever possible. Therefore, a
harpsichord sound should be found under Orchestral/Classical, as it’s an
instrument used in the repertoire of the 17th and 18th century.
Again, check Appendix B for a complete list of definitions.

Examples
In this section, we’ll present some examples of typical searches. In each
example, we kept the amount of selected Attributes to a minimum, just to give
you an idea about the basic principle. You always can refine your search.
• Analog Kick Drum: This search will provide you with a single kick drum
sound, as Solo/Single is selected (although the pitch of the kick drum
might change when you play across the keyboard). Try the Genre column
to refine your search.

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 • FM Bass: This is a typical search setting for an FM bass sound.

• Rave Lead: Note that no Instrument is specified, so this search will

give you all sounds that could be used in the same context.

100 – MASSIVE
• Soft Electric Piano: In this example, because Sweep/Filter Mod is
selected the sound will have some sort of filter movement. As a result,
the electric piano might have a wah-wah “feel” to it.

• Dark Pad

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 • Chord Stab

• Thin Bells

102 – MASSIVE
Appendix B – Attributes Reference
The following pages are a reference of all attributes used in MASSIVE’s
database. The attributes are identical to those used within KORE. They are
ordered in categories: first those used to describe an instrument sound, then
those that specify an effect sound.

Please note that some attributes should are mutually exclusive, e.g. a
sound’s source can either be acoustic or electric. Refer to Appendix A
for examples.

Instrument
This column specifies a sound’s basic instrumental quality. All other columns
are additional descriptions of these instruments. Only one instrument can be
chosen. The sound can be an emulation of the chosen instrument or a timbre
that audibly refers to an instrument without trying to imitate it (e.g., granular
processed flute sample).
• Piano/Keys: All acoustic/electric pianos, harpsichord, clavinet etc. In
general all sounds that are meant to be played in a piano/keyboard
fashion.
• Organ: Acoustic and electric organs. Also harmoniums and organ-like
reed instruments, e.g. accordion, melodica, reed organ etc. Generally
played on some kind of keyboard.
• Synth: All kinds of typical synth sounds not associated with other
instruments in this column. A typical synth brass sound for instance
belongs to Brass. Synth instruments that are meant to be played in
the lower range are found in Bass.
• Guitar: An instrument that sounds like a guitar, including acoustic,
classical, electric and synth guitars.
• Plucked Strings: Instruments that are generally played by plucking a
string, like a harp, koto, banjo, etc. This also applies to synth instruments
whose main sonic quality is derived from the sound characteristic of a
plucked string.
• Bass: A sound that can serve as the bass part in a production. A
synth should only be categorized as Bass if the lower range is more
convincing than the upper range. (Note that a double bass used in a
classical context (i.e., bowed) would be categorized as Bowed Strings.
However, if used in a jazz context (i.e. plucked), it would be categorized
as Bass.)

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 • Drums: A single drum sound, a drum kit or a drum loop based on an
acoustic or electronic drum kit. Typically this includes kick drum, snare,
toms, hi-hat, ride/crash cymbals, claps.
• Percussion: A single percussion sound, a percussion kit or a percussion
loop. This includes all idiophones and membranophones of indefinite
pitch, such as bongo, timpani, agogo etc. It also includes electronic
percussion that is not usually found in an electronic drum kit.
• Mallet Instruments: All instruments with definitive pitch played with
mallets, like vibraphones, xylophone, marimba, bells, steel drums
etc.
• Flute: Instruments that reproduce or simulate flutes (oscillating air
tubes) or which are based on flute samples. This includes acoustic
flutes, panpipes, synthetic flute simulations, breathy sounds, etc.
• Reed Instruments: Instruments that reproduce or simulate reed
instruments like oboe, clarinet, bassoon, saxophones etc. Note: reed
organs are categorized as Organ.
• Brass: Instruments that reproduce or simulate brass instruments like
trumpet, French horn, trombone, tuba. You’ll also find a lot of analog
brassy synth sounds in this category. Note that Saxophones are not
brass, but reed instruments.
• Bowed Strings: All instruments with a playing technique defined by
bowing a string, typically violin, viola, cello and double bass. Also,
typical analog string pads are found here.
• Vocal: Choirs, vocal samples and all other instruments that sound like
vocals. This also includes synth sounds that clearly make use of a
formant/vowel filter or a talkbox/vocoder to make the sound speak or
sing.
• Soundscapes: A sound providing some sort of acoustic scenery, whether
it’s based on tonal timbres or noise textures (typically long compared
to sound effects).
• Sound Effects: A sound effect (not an effect plug-in) like an explosion,
shot or footsteps (typically short compared to Soundscapes).
• Multitrack: A combination of several different instruments. If you can
imagine using the different instruments independently from each other,
it’s Multitrack. These are mostly sequenced or used in a key-split (like a
combination of drums/bass/keyboard). If the instruments blend into one
sonic entity, its Source is categorized as Layered and is not categorized
as Multitrack.
• Other: Select this Attribute if none of the above instruments apply.

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Source
Describes the source and/or synthesis technique with which the sound can
be associated, always in relation to the selected instrument.
• Acoustic: Further defines the instrument, e.g. acoustic piano, acoustic
guitar, acoustic (i.e., church) organ.
• Electric: Further defines the instrument as an electro-acoustic
instrument, e.g., electric piano, electric guitar, electric organ.
• Analog: Further defines the instrument as a typical subtractive synth
sound, e.g., analog bass, analog brass, analog synth.
• Digital: Further defines the instrument as a typical digital synth sound
(like wavetable, FM), e.g., digital bass, digital piano, digital synth.
• Synthetic: This Attribute describes the technical aspect of how the
sound was produced. Synthetic refers to all synthesis techniques like
subtractive, additive, FM, wavetable, granular etc.
• Sample-based: This Attribute describes the technical aspect of how
the sound was produced. Sample-based refers to all instruments in the
sense of sample playback, i.e., the sounds were obtained from external
sources.
• FM: A sound that uses FM synthesis. FM can also be used for sample-
based instruments that sound like FM.
• Additive: A sound that uses additive synthesis (or sounds like it).
• Granular: A sound that uses granular sampling (or sounds like it).
• Physical Model: A sound that uses physical modeling (or sounds like
it).
• Solo/Single: Used to differentiate between a single instrument and a
group of identical instruments, like a solo violin (as opposed to a violin
section) or a single snare drum (as opposed to a drum kit).
• Ensemble/Kit: Used to differentiate between a group of identical
instruments and a single instrument, like a string section or a drum
kit. Don’t mistake Ensemble/Kit with Layered.
• Small: Specifies the physical size of the instrument source to help
differentiate among similar instruments. Only select this Attribute to
describe real instrument sizes, not the timbre itself. For example, a
violin is categorized as Bowed Strings/Small; a hand drum would be
found under Percussion/Small.
• Big: Specifies the physical size of the instrument source to help
differentiate among similar instruments. Only select this Attribute to
describe real instrument sizes, not the timbre itself. (For example a

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 violoncello is categorized as Bowed Strings/Big; a taiko drum would be
found under Percussion/Big.)
• Dry: Has no noticeable effects like reverb or delay. Distortion and/or
filtering do not affect this Attribute.
• Processed: A sound reinforced with some obviously added and audible
effects like delay, reverb or chorus.
• Layered: A sound where two or more sound sources contribute to one
instrument. The sounds must combine to form one sonic character,
like a typical Piano + String sound.
• Sequence/Loop: Based on a sequence or loop, like a step-sequenced
synth or a drum loop. This Attribute is not used for simple repeating
or retriggering of notes (see Arpeggiated).
• Surround: A sound using surround-sound technology.

Timbre
This set of attributes describes the sonic composition of the sound (always
considering the selected instrument).
• High: Used for high-pitched sounds and to distinguish similar timbres
by their range, like a piccolo flute, hi-hat, bells etc.
• Low: Used for low-pitched sounds and to distinguish similar timbres
by their range, like a bass clarinet, kick drum, sub bass etc.
• Distorted: A sound featuring obvious distortion/overdrive. Saturated
and heavily bit reduced sounds are also found here.
• Clean: A sound featuring no distorted sound elements at all. Can be
used to further specify instrument groups, e.g. clean electric guitar.
• Bright: A sound with emphasized high frequencies.
• Dark: A sound with de-emphasized high frequencies, perhaps from
lowpass filtering.
• Warm: A sound with an organic, pleasing ambience, often associated
with analog sounds. Technically speaking, warm sounds tend to have
a bit more lower midrange emphasis and not too many highs.
• Cold: Not a natural sound, but a more electronic/digital sound.
• Fat: A “room-filling” sound, e.g., an analog super sawtooth sound, also
to be used with typical unison sounds.
• Thin: A small sound or a sound with a narrow frequency band.
• Hard: A general, rather subjective interpretation of a sound. Can be
used to differentiate similar instruments (e.g., vibraphone with hard
mallets). Also associated with hard-synced oscillators.
106 – MASSIVE
 • Soft: A general, rather subjective interpretation of a sound. Can be
used to differentiate similar instruments (e.g., vibraphone with soft
mallets).
• Muted: A sound with a muted or damped quality, like a muted guitar
or con sordino strings. Usually found on acoustic instruments (a dark
sound is not necessarily muted).
• Detuned: A sound with detuned oscillators to create floating tones, like
saw leads used in trance music or honky-tonk piano. This is not used
when the oscillators are tuned a fifth apart (see Chord), and it is not
used with instruments that use micro intervals and/or non-standard
tunings.
• Dissonant: A sound that in general is not playable tonally.
• Noisy: With some noise elements in the sound, but still playable tonally,
like very breathy flutes. Slightly bit-reduced (not yet distorted) and lo-fi
sounds are also categorized as Noisy.
• Metallic: A sound with a metallic quality. Note that several types of
bells and FM often sound metallic.
• Wooden: A sound with a wooden quality, like a bamboo flute or
xylophone.
• Exotic: Sounds with an extremely unusual quality fall under this
category.

Articulation
Describes how the sound progresses over time in terms of volume and timbre.
Also, this column lists all the Attributes that affect the playing style.
• Slow Attack: A sound with a gradual attack or a fade-in.
• Decaying: A sound that decays while holding a key, like a piano or a
guitar. It does not necessarily fade out completely; see Sustained.
• Sustained: A sound with a constant volume level while holding a key,
e.g. an organ or sustained strings. The sound doesn’t fall under this
category if just a small part of the signal is sustained. A sound can be
both Decaying and Sustained. A loop, although it continues to play a
sound, is usually not categorized as Sustained.
• Long Release: A sound with a long fade out after releasing the key,
like a bell or a pad. This can also indicate instruments with release
samples. Don’t confuse Long Release with an echo or long reverb!
• Percussive: A sound with a short attack and usually short decay/release,
often found in the group of drums or percussion.

MASSIVE – 107
 • Long/Evolving: A sound with a complex, moving or increasing envelope,
which persists for more than just a few seconds.
• Pulsating: A sound with periodic changes in volume and/or timbre over
time, e.g., a step modulator controlling volume/filter. A loop is not
necessarily Pulsating - only if it is processed in a similar manner.
• Echoing: A sound with significant reverb or delay.
• Pad: A sound texture suitable for as a homophonic background. As
opposed to a Soundscape, a Pad has a more uniform characteristic
and is often played as a chord.
• Lead: A sound suitable for the main instrumental melody part.
• Monophonic: A sound that can play only one (MIDI) note at a time,
with or without key-up action.
• Chord: A sound with more than one pitch played simultaneously per
key, like fifth leads. This does not include sounds that simply double
the octave. A Chord can also be Monophonic, as long as only one (MIDI)
note is sounding at a time.
• Glide/Pitch Mod: A sound that uses pitch slides between note transitions.
It also indicates sounds with pitch modulation, like a dropping kick
drum.
• Sweep/Filter Mod: A sound with some kind of filter modulation, i.e.,
an LFO or envelope modulates filter parameters. A simple velocity to
filter modulation is not sufficient (see Expressive).
• Arpeggiated: A sound that arpeggiates or repeats held notes. A sound
that triggers a sequence is not Arpeggiated, but Sequenced/Loop.
• Tempo-synced: A sound that clearly changes when the host tempo
changes, i.e., where certain parameters like LFO or delay times are
synced to tempo.
• Expressive: A sound with a large and noticeable dynamic and/or tonal
range, controlled by either velocity or mod wheel (a subtle velocity to
amplitude routing is not sufficient).
• Multiple: Used to denote instruments that feature more than one
articulation. Usually applies to key-switched instruments.
• Randomized: A sound with random elements in it, for example a random
or free-running LFO modulating filter. Also indicate sequences and/or
loops that give the impression of randomness.

108 – MASSIVE
Genre
Describes the typical musical genre to which a sound would be suited. It can
also stand for a particular sound’s origin.
• Avantgarde: Sounds associated with modern contemporary music,
whether acoustic or electronic. This Attribute works well in combination
with other genres, e.g. orchestral + avantgarde might include extended
playing techniques on acoustic instruments.
• Orchestral/Classical: Sounds used in a traditional symphonic orchestra
or chamber group. Such sounds need not necessarily be dry, but the
emphasis is placed on natural reproduction. Sample-based acoustic
instruments are usually found here.
• Film Music: Sounds associated with film music and/or game audio. In
general, sounds belonging to this category have a certain “bombastic”
quality, in other words they’re ready to use for scoring, like massive
orchestral brass, airy atmospheric synth textures and cinematic
effects.
• Ambient/Electronica: Sounds that create a certain atmosphere, based
on depth and warmth. Also, sounds with a kind of slow motion character
or “clicks & bleeps” are often used for ambient or electronica tracks
and will be found here, as well as all typical sounds for “intelligent
electronic music” (opposite of cheap plastic sounds).
• Drum&Bass/Breaks: Prominent and deep basses combined with dark
lead sounds and gloomy atmospheric hover pads. Synthetic sound
effects are also a part of this genre, as syncopated drum loops are often
based on polyrhythms and samples from 70s jazz and funk records.
• House: Typical warm and often human-sounding elements are used
for this four to the floor dance music, e.g. organ chords, warm analog
basses etc. Generally more analog sounds with a certain depth will be
found here.
• Techno/Electro: Synthetic and electronic sounds and sound effects with
a rather dry and dark nature are this genre’s trademark. Percussion
with hard attack and a very compressed character belong here as well
as a wide spectrum of synthetic bass sounds, stabs and leads.
• Industrial: Sounds with a digital and cold/metallic character, often
combined with noisy or distorted elements, belong in here.
• Dance/Trance: Sounds with a rather soft and warm character will be
found here. Typical sounds are analog and digital synth pads, melodic
elements (from soft and small to typical detuned super saw sounds for

MASSIVE – 109
 trance anthems) and commercial dance sounds like bells and arpeggiated
elements go here. Sounds that are suited to create a hypnotic mood
also fit here.
• HipHop/Downbeat: Sounds with a laid back and chilled character belong
in here as well as typical sound effects like vinyl-scratching, struck
drum sounds with an acoustic or analog synthetic character, and mellow
pads.
• Funk/Soul: These instruments have that vintage funk sound, such as
organs from the 60s, synths from the 70s, wah-wah guitars, slap bases,
and dry acoustic drums.
• Reggae/Dub: For this genre, typical instruments would be dry acoustic
drums and percussion, clean guitars, some acoustic flutes and smaller
organs.
• Latin/Afro-Cuban: Sounds to be used in Central and South American
music (Salsa, Son, Samba, Bossa Nova). This includes all Latin
percussion such as congas, maracas and timbales, as well as some
acoustics guitars and djembes.
• Rock: Typical sounds for straightforward rock music, like electric guitars
and basses, acoustic drums, and dirty synths.
• Pop: A rather broad musical genre that includes sounds of typical
“radio-ready” music, ranging from pianos and guitars to electro-pop
synths and drums.
• Jazz: All typical jazz instruments like piano, upright bass, saxes, brass
and drums are found here. In other words, all sounds used for an
acoustic jazz arrangement, ranging from small ensemble to big band.
Sounds are rather natural in character with little or no processing.
• Folk/Country: Sounds associated with all kinds of folk and songwriter
styles like bluegrass, klezmer, blues. In general, this encompasses
acoustic sounds.
• Ethnic/World: Sounds associated with non-western musical cultures
like south/north Indian music, gamelan, Arabic/Persian, Asian and
African music. These sounds need not necessarily be acoustic in nature;
electronic textures can also be categorized here as long as they reflect
this kind of atmosphere.

110 – MASSIVE
Index
A C
Aftertouch
as a modulation source............ 83
all-pass..................................... 45
Amp knob................................. 38
amplitude modulation................. 52
Amplitude Modulation Slots........ 52
Amp Section............................. 51
Articulation....................... 98, 107
Articulation Attributes ............... 87
ASIO.......................................... 7
AT............................................ 83
Attributes.................. 9, 16, 84, 94
defining................................. 92
definitions of........................ 103
Attributes View Button................ 16
Audio and MIDI Settings............... 7
MIDI Tab.................................. 7
Routing Tab.............................. 7
Soundcard Tab.......................... 7
Automation............................... 27
automation................................ 29
B E
Bend modes.............................. 36
Bipolar Modulation..................... 25
Bitcrusher................................. 49
Braun666Tube.......................... 55
Browser.......................... 8, 84, 86
Browser View......................... 8, 86
buffer size..............................7, 32
Bypass Section.......................... 52
Bypass Target Selector............... 53
Center Window.................... 26, 56
Chorus...................................... 54
Clear Button.............................. 87
clipping indicator....................... 22
computer keyboard
used for MIDI input................... 8
context menu...................... 14, 21
Core Audio.................................. 7
CPU Load................................. 32
CPU load.................................. 19
CPU Load Indicator.................... 32
D
Database.................................. 86
database................................... 85
rebuilding............................... 88
Database View....................... 8, 86
Delay.................................. 48, 55
Dimension Expander.................. 55
dirty bass sounds....................... 47
envelope
internal............................ 58, 77
envelope generator..................... 15
Envelopes................................. 15
equalizer................................... 55
MASSIVE – 111
F G
Faders................................ 20, 25
Feedback Section...................... 41
file locations
default................................... 89
File Tree View............................ 88
filter
all-pass.................................. 45
AP......................................... 45
band-pass.............................. 45
band-reject............................. 45
comb..................................... 46
Daft....................................... 46
DNA...................................... 45
double-notch.......................... 45
high-pass............................... 45
HP2...................................... 45
HP4....................................... 45
low-pass................................ 45
LP2....................................... 45
LP4....................................... 45
parallel routing of.................... 44
saturation............................... 42
Scream.................................. 46
serial routing.......................... 12
serial routing of....................... 44
Filter FM................................... 40
Filter frequency modulation......... 40
Filter Input Fader....................... 12
filters........................................ 12
Filter Section....................... 12, 43
Filter Types............................... 45
Flanger..................................... 54
FM synthesis............................. 39
Formant mode........................... 37
frequency modulation................. 39
Frequency Shifter....................... 49
112 – MASSIVE
General Pages..................... 56, 57
Genre..................................... 109
Genre Attributes ....................... 87
Glide........................................ 57
H
high-pass.................................. 45
host automation......................... 29
host sequencer.......................... 29
HPLP....................................... 50
I
Input Fader............................... 17
Insert Effects............................ 47
Routing.................................. 47
Insert Effects Position Selectors.. 48
Installation.................................. 6
Instrument........................ 94, 103
Instrument Attributes................. 87
Intensity................................... 36
K
Keytracking
modulation source................... 83
Keytracking Oscillator Page......... 59
Knobs....................................... 20
KORE....................................... 85
KoreSound................................ 84
KTr........................................... 83
L
latency...................................7, 32
LFO.................. 23, 24, 25, 27, 35,
........................ 38, 52, 69, 74, 76
Load
a sound.................................... 7
loading time.............................. 91
Loop Area Bar..................... 79, 81
loop range................................. 81
low-pass................................... 45
Low Frequency Oscillator............ 76
M noise generator.......................... 41
Macro Control........................ 9, 83
Macro Controls.......................... 27
library assigments................... 83
Macro Control Section................ 83
Master Effects Section............... 53
Master Volume Control................ 52
Master Volume Section............... 55
Meta Information................. 16, 92
MIDI......................................... 27
configuration file..................... 29
context menu.......................... 29
external controller................... 29
Program Change messages....... 91
saving assignments................. 29
MIDI assignments...................... 13
MIDI channel............................. 32
MIDI control, how to set up......... 14
MIDI Learn................................ 29
modulation
amount.................................. 22
context menu.......................... 22
Modulation Controls................... 21
Modulation Handle......... 14, 22, 27
Modulation oscillator.................. 39
Modulation Pages...................... 56
Modulation Slot................... 14, 22
Modulation Sources.................... 22
modulation sources.............. 13, 26
Mono Button............................. 58
mouse conventions..................... 21
My Favorites........................ 89, 90
My Sounds................................ 89
N
Navigation Bar..................... 30, 31
New Sound............................... 30
NI Service Center......................... 6
Noise........................................ 41
Noise Section............................ 41
Noisetable................................. 41
O
Open Sound.............................. 30
Options..................................... 30
Browser Tab........................... 30
General Tab............................ 30
MIDI Tab................................ 30
oscillator mode.......................... 36
Oscillator Section................. 11, 33
OSC Page................................. 57
Output Device............................. 7
output latency............................. 7
Output Sections......................... 51
P
Panic........................................ 32
Parabolic Shaper........................ 51
Performer...................... 27, 41, 69,
............................ 74, 80, 82, 84
Phase....................................... 57
Phase Graphic Display................ 58
Phase modulation...................... 39
Phaser...................................... 54
Phase Slider.............................. 58
Pitch.................................. 36, 58
pitch........................................ 59
MASSIVE – 113
Pitchbend........................... 57, 58
Popup Menus............................ 19
Position modulation.................... 39
Preset Selector.......................... 31
Previous and Next buttons.......... 20
Programs.................................. 91
Q Sine Shaper.............................. 50
Quickstart................................... 7
R Space....................................... 53
Range Knobs............................. 21
Rebuild Database button............ 31
Recent Files.............................. 30
register....................................... 6
Reset Button............................... 9
Resize Database Views............... 88
resonance peak......................... 42
Restart Via Gate Button.............. 58
Ring modulation......................... 39
Routing
of filters................................. 43
of Insert Effects...................... 47
Routing Fader.................39, 41, 43
Routing Faders.......................... 17
Routing Page........................17, 42
S Tube......................................... 55
Sample & Hold.......................... 48
sample rate................................. 7
Save......................................... 30
save......................................... 16
Save As.............................. 16, 30
Save As button.......................... 33
Save button............................... 33
Scream..................................... 46
Search Result List........................ 9
114 – MASSIVE
Search Results.......................... 90
Search Term field................. 10, 93
Section Headers........................ 19
Service Center............................. 6
Setup......................................... 6
Setup Guide................................ 6
Sidechain modulation................. 22
Signal Flow............................... 17
sound library............................... 8
Source.............................. 95, 105
Source Attributes ...................... 87
Spectrum mode......................... 36
Standalone Menus..................... 30
Stepper............. 24, 27, 36, 41, 50,
....................... 68, 69, 74, 78, 84
step sequencer.................... 22, 78
subtractive synthesizers.............. 11
synthesis basics......................... 11
Synth View................................ 10
T
Timbre...............................97, 106
Timbre Attributes ...................... 87
tremolo..................................... 38
Trigger Random
modulation source................... 83
TrR........................................... 83
tube amp simulator.................... 55
U
Uebersat................................... 55
Unisono Control......................... 19
updates...................................... 6
user content folder..................... 90
User Interface........................... 19
V
Vel........................................... 83
Velocity..................................... 83
as a modulation source............ 83
Vibrato................................ 57, 58
View buttons............................. 33
Voices................................. 18, 32
voice spreading.......................... 26
Voicing.................................17, 18

W
Wavetable oscillators.................. 34
wavetable position...................... 12
Wavetable Position Control.......... 34
wavetables.......................... 11, 34

MASSIVE – 115